Epiphany
by NoLove10
Summary: Epiphany: They say it's the little moments in life, the ones you can point at and have absolute clarity of what was missing. Fitzgerald Grant knew all about epiphanies but the last thing he expected when he walked into Mike's Pub was to fall in love.
1. Chapter 1

She wondered if he knew that she knows what he had done. She wondered if he knew that she knows he had destroyed their relationship and that there was no way of ever fixing it.

Sitting across from him at the table at the restaurant, she was lost in another world. His lips were moving, his eyes were still glowing, so she knew he was still talking to her. She believed that he maybe was even still in love with her. So how could he have done that to her? To them?

"Liv..." He reached across the table and shook her hand.

Snapping out of it, she looked at him and faux-smiled. "Yes?"

"What's wrong?" He asked. "You haven't touched your food and you seemed a mile away."

 _You cheated is what's wrong! You jeopardized our whole entire relationship for pussy and there's no coming back from it!_

She wanted to scream. In her mind right now, they're not sitting in this restaurant being all proper and eating dinner. In her mind, she's not listening to him talk about Obama's polls- like she gives a shit. In her mind, this place is a disaster of broken windows and destroyed tables and she's screaming at him and people are watching as she calls out his cheating ass.

Being classy didn't mean that she had to sit here with a poker face and pretend that everything was perfect between them because it wasn't. Everything was a lie and she couldn't look at him without wanting to jump at him across the table and stab him with the steak knife that was in his hand.

"What happened Tuesday night?" She asked.

She couldn't keep it in anymore.

And if she had any doubt before, the expression on his face when she mentioned Tuesday night told her everything she needed to know.

"What?"

He was being defensive already.

"Tuesday night, Edison." She repeated. "The night you came back from Long Island."

He raised his eyebrows, his cheating ass still feigning ignorance. "I told you. I spend a few hours with my mother then I was on the road home."

Shit. Forget being classy. If there's two things in the world that she absolutely despises, it's liars and cheaters. And right now, he was both.

"Don't lie to my face!" She slammed her hands on the table and he flinched.

"Liv, you're making a scene for no reason. Calm down. Let's get the tab and get out of here so we can talk about whatever this is in private."

Shaking her head, she chuckled dryly and bitterly. He was treating her as though she was in the wrong. Overreacting for no reason when she knows exactly what he'd done. "I already feel like a fool for trusting you, so _do NOT_ sit here and make a bigger fool out of me by lying to my face Edison!" Her voice getting louder. "Unless you're into the habit of fucking your mother nowadays, explain the goddamn pink lipstick stain and the lavender perfume because I know whose it's not. It's not mine and don't you dare sit here and insult me again because If you do, I swear to you, _I will_ stab you with that knife in front of me."

His jaw tightened, the brown of his eyes now a dark shade of black filled with embarrassment.

"So you don't know how it got there?" Olivia prompted with false humor dripping from her tone. "Okay, well then explain to me why you felt the need to bury a perfectly good dress shirt so deep inside the trashcan. Oh, wait, I got a better one for you. What about all the text messages from Lisa?"

He opened his mouth with an excuse. "Liv, I can explain. It was just one night-"

 _Just one night._

Yet the text messages she found on his Blackberry just the other day says otherwise.

She'd stomach enough of this already. She wasn't gonna stick around for this shit show. She deserved better.

"I'm done." She said, pushing her chair back and scrambling out of her seat.

He stood up too, grabbing at her. "Liv, listen to me,"

"YOU CHEATED, EDISON!" She burst. "There's no coming back from that. _There's no justifying it._ You took all that we've built over the past two years and threw it in a flame. It's all ashes now. There's nothing left to be salvage. Nothing to be saved and rebuild. I'm done. _We're done!_ "

Now, they had the attention of all the patrons at the restaurant. All eyes were fixed on them and whispers were going around. For the first time since she found out, Olivia ran out of fucks to give. She didn't care if she was making a scene. _Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned_. Whatever.

She grabbed their unfinished bottle of wine and raised it to her lips for a long, healthy swig. Fuck being a lady, fuck being classy. He cheated and how she dealt with what he broke was her business alone. So if she wanted to chug on a bottle of wine in some fancy ass restaurant with an audience, that's exactly what she was going to do. She could care less if people judged. She ran out of fucks to give.

"You know what the worst part is?" She looked into his eyes and shook her head. "You climbed in bed next to me that night, told me you loved me and still tried to fuck me knowing what you had done. You're a pig."

"Olivia, please stop this."

"Fuck you." She waved her hand about hoping to get a server's attention. When one came towards her with a tray carrying an expensive bottle of fine champagne, she took it off the tray and smiled, not caring the least bit about whose it was.

"You can go ahead and add that to his tab."

On her way out, she saw a white couple's judgy eyes solely fixated on her and they were shaking their head _s_ at her. "Oh, what are you looking at?" She asked, looking squarely at the older woman. "Bill here has probably been fucking his secretary for twenty-three of your twenty-five years marriage. You don't see me shaking my head at you though."

The husband shut his mouth and the poor older woman went into shock arrest. Guess she nailed that right on the head. Call her petty. _Whatever._

She passed another waiter with a bottle opener and took it. It will come handy later.

"Ma'am, you cannot leave this restaurant with that bottle opener. It's a law."

"Sue me then."

She kicked the restaurant's door open and stepped outside into the New York city afternoon. The wind blew her curls back and she breathed in the salty summer air as she flagged down a yellow cab.

As she was climbing in the back of the cab, she saw the manager of the restaurant hot on her heels, yelling something inaudible after her. But she could care less.

* * *

...

Across town in Brooklyn, Fitzgerald Grant had just closed down the gym and was on his way to Mike's pub for a well deserved drink. He's had a long week and he figured a drink or two would loosen him up and chase away the stress of the week.

Parking his car in front of the local bar, he walked into the bar and saluted the regular patrons before making his way to the bar.

"Your usual, buddy?" Mike asked upon seeing him.

Fitz nodded his head as he shared his special handshake with Mike. He's been coming to this bar ever since he moved. It's been his little hang out place so it was pretty safe to say that he and Mike had a pretty amicable relationship. Enough for him to know his regular drink order by now.

"You got it, boss. One whiskey on the rocks coming right up." Mike said.

It wasn't until he pulled up an empty stool around the bar did he finally start to feel himself unwind. As Fitz waited for his drink, he let his gaze slide over the very successful local bar. Nothing was out of the ordinary tonight. Old 80's and 90's songs piped in through the overhead speakers and he listened while tapping his feet on the floor. He watched as a few hustlers indulged themselves in illegal gambling, playing an intense game of pool. Other patrons sat at their tables, swapping tales over the famous house special of spicy buffalo chicken wings and beverages. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves and having a good time.

Nothing was out of the ordinary, except for her.

 _Her_ with the natural bronze skin that looked soft as caramel. _Her_ with the long, beautiful curly black hair bouncing off her back. _Her_ who looked unapologetically feminine, sophisticated and sexy wearing a black bustier, tribal fitting pencil skirt and sheepskin suede ankle length high heel boots. _Her_ who looked absolutely breathtaking.

 _She wasn't ordinary._

His eyes studied her up and down and back up again. She was a vision; sex on a stick; dope _(whatever words people use nowadays to describe an attractive woman),_ but however, it's not what attracted him to her.

It's the fact that out of everyone else here at that bar tonight, she looked the loneliest. _The saddest._ She was sitting alone almost at the very end of the bar nursing a glass of martini, running her fingers up and down the stem of the martini glass in long, slow strokes completely lost in her world and oblivious to everything and everyone around her.

"I know man. She's fine!" Mike whispered to him only as he slide his requested drink towards him.

Something inside Fitz turned on like a switch and he couldn't help but feel protective of her already. He didn't know where that feeling came from but he didn't want to chase it away either so he shrugged it off as nothing. She was a beautiful woman. Surely he could appreciate that as a red-blooded man. But why did he feel the need to be protective towards a stranger he barely knew?

"Who is she?" Fitz asked.

"Don't know, man." Mike replied, risking a look. "She walked in here three hours ago with a pissed off look on her face and claimed that seat."

"How much has she had to drink?"

Mike shrugged. "I don't know. A few. Enough for her to be real buzzed."

"Hmm..." Fitz mumbled. "You think somebody stood her up?"

Mike shook his head. "No man." He affirmed. "With a body and a face like hers, I can't imagine any man in their right mind that would stand her up."

Fitz couldn't either. Finally taking his drink in his hand, he threw it back in one long gulp before asking for another refill.

* * *

...

Growing up as an only child, Olivia has pretty much mastered the art of being the center of attention which means, she knew when the whisper was about her and when someone couldn't stop staring at her. And if she was gonna guess, that guy at the other end of the bar that walked in not too long ago has been staring at her for about five minutes now. Give or take.

Normally, she would be flattered if she wasn't under such a dark cloud tonight.

She could feel his eyes piercing a hole in her body and she wondered if she turned around and took a glance at him what she would see in his eyes. Would it be arousal, desire and want? Or would it be pity and sympathy and faux-kindness. What was her body language saying tonight?

It can't hurt to look. She'd be subtle about it. See what the fuss was about.

Using the glass of martini as bait, she brought the glass of liquid that she'd been nursing for the past twenty minutes to her lips and threw back the clear liquid. The aftermath burned the back of her throat and a quick rush of adrenaline shot down her blood stream.

"Can I get another drink?" She turned her head in search for the bartender.

Instead, his were the first ones that she met. Mesmerizing blue eyes, clearer and brighter than the sky itself. She found herself lost in them across the room and captivated by his handsome face. Lips parted, she watched him. Every flicker, every blink, every twitch of his jaw, she studied him like an intriguing, fascinating puzzle and he watched her right back, almost as if he was studying her also with his penetrating, alluring gaze and for an instant, she almost didn't feel that deep, gutted, unendurable pain that Edison caused her.

He gave her a small smile and she gave him a nod in acknowledgement.

His said: _Hi friend..._

In return, she bid: _Hello... friend?_

It didn't take him long after that to walk towards her. She'd had just gotten her refill from the bartender when he walked over to her. He didn't say anything for a few seconds. He just watched her.

"Is this seat taken?" He finally asked.

The first thing that came to mind was; _"holy shit! Hotness alert!"_ His voice was a rich, deep baritone and it sent chills down her spine.

Shrugging her shoulders, she glanced at him and replied; "I guess it is now."

Smirking, he pushed the stool back and climbed on it. "My name's Fitz."

 _Fitz-_ she thought. It was nice to finally put a name to his gorgeous face.

"What's that short for?" She asked.

Fitz raised his eyebrows in surprise. That wasn't what he expected her to ask. Normally when you tell someone your name, they usually answer back by giving their name in introduction instead of asking a question. He guessed she was different.

"It's short for Fitzgerald." He replied.

"Anybody ever tell you that it's rude to stare, Fitzgerald?" She asked.

He smiled shyly. "A few times." He replied. "Guess I couldn't help it this time."

"Smooth." Olivia nodded, quite amused. "Does that line always work?" She asked.

"Who says it was a line?"

Taken off guard, Olivia couldn't help the laughter that escaped her lips. It felt good to forget for a little bit and just be. "So you're not trying to hit on me right now?" She questioned with raised eyebrows.

He shook his head. "You'd definitely know if I was hitting on you, sweetheart."

"Oh yeah?"

He nodded. "Oh yeah."

"How come?" Olivia asked.

"Because I would've known your name by now. And there would be less talking between us. Our lips will be put to better use."

"Wow!" Olivia chuckled. "Now does that always work?"

He shrugged with a knowing smirk. "I don't know. How's it doing on you tonight?"

"My name's Olivia."

"Olivia..." He tested the name on his mouth, tasting it and drawing out every syllable in his deep baritone voice. It sounded right. It fit her. "What is a woman like yourself doing alone at this bar, Olivia?"

"A woman like myself?" Olivia asked, confusion creasing her brows.

"Yes." Fitz nodded. "I've never seen you around here before, so I'm curious."

"Hm, I think the better question is, what are you drinking about tonight, Fitzgerald?"

"I've had a long week so I came here to have a few drink and let the stress of the week roll off me." Fitz replied.

The last thing he expected was her rolling her eyes and calling him out.

"Bullshit." She said. "God, I wish men would just stop lying to me today."

 _Well that sounds personal._ Fitz thought.

With an amused smirk, he urged. "Okay then, why don't you tell me what I'm here for, _Olivia_?"

"I'm not saying you're not here for the reason you said." Olivia said. "It's just not the full story."

"Oh no?"

"No." She shook her head. "Men never come to a bar and drink for the sole purpose of _"unwinding"._ Men come to bars because they're angry or want to get laid. And do you know what's a real good stress reliever?"

Fitz shook his head. This was interesting and he liked where this was going so he figured he'd let her school him a little bit. "Enlighten me."

 _"Sex."_ She told him. " _Good sex_. _Nasty-sweaty-messy sex_. Yes, you're here to have a few drink and relax but you're also trying to kill two birds with one stone. So to speak."

Fitz was impressed. Would he turn down taking home an attractive woman if he was interested in her? Absolutely not. But that was just it though. Tonight, he was interested in her. He'd very much like to take her home and see where the moment takes them but he had a feeling that she wasn't looking for that tonight. So instead, he decided to feel her out more and rolled a different dice.

"Would you say the same about women?"

"Say what about women?" Olivia asked.

"That they come to bars in hopes of getting laid too." Fitz answered.

Olivia shrugged nonchalantly. "Why not?" She replied. "But we live in a society where everything is backwards and equality's bullshit so we pretend we don't because _God_ forbid we actually are comfortable with our sexuality, enough to want to pick up a hot young thing at a bar for a night, we're not called badass or fierce or brave. We get slut-shamed and called every dirty name in the history of the universe! But if a man does it, they get praised."

Fitz couldn't help but smile. She was a feisty little one and he told her so.

"Color me feminist or passionate. Whatever floats your boat."

"I'm gonna buy you another drink and in return, you're gonna tell me why you're so pissed off. Deal?"

"Sure." She replied.

Fitz called for Mike and a refill of both their drinks were brought to them.

"Why are you drinking tonight, Olivia?" He asked.

"Because men are pigs." She replied.

Raising a concerned eyebrow, he prompted, "Care to elaborate?"

"You ever been cheated on and lied to, Fitzgerald?" She asked.

At the sudden change in his eyes, Olivia shook her head. The look in his eyes then was exactly what she didn't need at the moment. It was a mixture of something she couldn't quite put a name to and it made her shiver. She didn't want his pity or his sympathy.

"You know what, forget I said anything." She said.

"Okay." Fitz nodded. "We don't have to talk about it."

"Okay."

Mike kept the refills coming and Olivia was more than happy to drink them in order to numb the pain and forget.

...

 _Two hours later..._

"How'd you get here?" He asked.

Olivia chuckled bitterly. The irony of this question wasn't lost on her. How did she get here indeed. How did she go from being in a relationship she thought was solid and stable and good; to finding out that her boyfriend was nothing but a two-faced lying-cheating-ass bastard, piece of shit. _How indeed._

Olivia snapped out of it. She knew it's not exactly what he was asking but her mind went there anyways. So she shrugged. She was drunk and sweating and this bar suddenly felt like an oven operating at 450 degrees. She didn't freaking know! She doesn't really remember getting to this bar. All she remembers is breaking up with Edison's cheating ass and storming out of the restaurant pissed as hell with a bottle of the most expensive champagne they had and she vaguely remembers the manager of the restaurant yelling after her to pay for it. And then in response, her telling him he can go fuck himself as she hopped into a cab.

Then the aforementioned cab took her here to this local bar, where she proceeded to drink her sorrows away alone until he joined her. And now, she was talking to him.

"I don't know." She replied truthfully.

Fitz sighed. She doesn't know how she got here. Could this night get any more bizarre? Seriously.

"Alright, I'll drive you home."

Sadness threatened to swallow her whole. Olivia didn't know where _home_ was for the night. She sure as hell wasn't gonna go back to the shared apartment she had with Edison. It was too late to make a drive to her parent's cottage in the Hamptons. And sure, she could crash at her best friend Abby's but that would require talking about what actually happened between her and Edison and that was the last thing she wanted because she didn't have the energy to feel emotionally drained yet. At this point crashing at a crappy motel was her best option.

So she swallowed the lump in her throat, daring the sadness to go the fuck away because she didn't have time to be bawling her eyes in front of a stranger. A pretty hot one at that. She's always been told from a very young age that she could be a great actress and often times, she used that natural skill to her advantage. Tonight was one of those time. Olivia raised her eyebrows at him before bursting into a fit of drunken laughter.

"What's so funny?" Fitz asked.

Assuming she was as drunk as she was acting, everything was funny to her.

"You thinking that I'll go anywhere with you." Olivia replied.

Frustrated, Fitz threw his hands up in the air, shaking his head in disbelief. "Listen, I'm trying to do something nice for you, so can you please not give me a hard time?"

"I'll take a cab." Olivia retorted.

"No way." Fitz shook his head. "Nope. You're not taking a cab."

He didn't know what it was about her, but for some reason, he wanted something from this woman. He wasn't sure what that something was though. But for tonight, he felt the need to protect her and be there for her however he can; knowing already how much she was probably hurting deep inside. He can relate to that kind of vulnerability. Just wanting to numb it all after being hurt. He wanted to be there for her. Perhaps that was what he wanted from her. To just be a friend.

But drunk as she was right now, she was infuriating and sarcastic and she made him tick in a way no one has been able to in his entire life. That made it actually kind of hard to be a friend to her.

"One, you don't tell me what to do. No one tells me what to do. Two, after tonight, my trust in men in general has diminished to pretty much nothing- so, you're barking up at the wrong tree. And three- I don't know what three is but I'm taking a taxi."

She was determined and he was persistent. See how that was not going to work?

"Hm," Fitz nodded, his ears turning cherry red. How could he want to shake her and kiss her at the same time?

 _So goddamn infuriating!_

" _Hm_ , what?"

" _Hm_ \- I don't care what you want." Fitz answered. "You've had a bit much to drink and I don't trust some random cab driver to take you home."

Olivia groaned. Even drunk, it had to have been the sexiest thing Fitz had heard in awhile.

"You know, for a cute guy, you mister, are really working my goddamn nerves!"

Fitz scoffed. _Cute..._ What fuckery. _She called him cute! Baby ducks are cute!_

He'd like to think of himself as: handsome, irresistible, hot. That's just to name a few. But _cute?_ Nah!

"You're not exactly my favorite either right now."

"I can take care of myself." Olivia told him.

"Oh I'm sure you can." Fitz replied. "But you're not getting into some stranger's cab and that's final."

Olivia threw back the rest of her drink because she was seriously a second away from strangling him to death. Who does he think he is telling her what she can or cannot do?

"Why's that?"

"You're drunk and things happen to drunk people who get into strangers' cars."

After his statement, Olivia couldn't help but chuckle.

"What's funny now?"

"Do you happen to watch law & order or any of those other cop shows by any chance?" She asked.

Fitz shrugged. "Maybe. So what?"

"So what?" Olivia smirked. "That is seriously the cutest thing ever!" She teased.

There she goes calling him cute again. What the hell about him says cute?

"I can promise you that some psycho serial killer is not going to gas me out in the back of his filthy cab and try to castrate my every organ for _'scientific'_ purposes." She was laughing before she added, "Though your concern is very touching, I do not need an escort or a bodyguard for that matter."

Honestly, was that supposed to make him feel better? She might think it's hilarious but to him, it wasn't. Those freaks really do exist somewhere out there in the world and he wasn't in the mood to go home tonight and read about her in the newspapers the next morning. That would be too much of a heavy weight on his conscience.

So he tried one more time. Begging this time. Puppy dog-eye, pouty lips and all. "Come home with me, Olivia. You can crash at my place and leave when you sober up in the morning. Please."

She said nothing.

"Please."

One minute passed... His blue eyes still begging her to reconsider.

"God, you're persistent!" Olivia broke. "Let me see your wallet."

Fitz was so confused. Why did she need his wallet? "What?"

"Let me see your wallet." Olivia repeated again, extending her hand impatiently.

"Why?"

She sighed. "As far as I'm concerned, I don't know you from here to there. You're as much of a stranger as a cab driver would be. So if I'm gonna be going anywhere with you at all- and your home of all places, and spending the night also, I wanna see your fucking wallet." She explained. Snapping her fingers, she smiled. "Fork it over, cutie pie."

 _Cutie pie?_

 _Just... no._

 _Nope._

"You are something else." Fitz shook his head as he reached for his wallet in his back pocket.

He handed it to her and watched as she searched through it. A few credit cards, his driver's license and three -hundred something dollars in cash. And a Trojan condom.

Olivia flashed it at him with raised eyebrows. "Really?"

He shrugged. Blushing. "Better safe than sorry."

Olivia rolled her eyes. "Whatever helps you sleep at night, _cutie pie_."

Snatching the wallet from her, he put it back in his pocket. "Satisfied?" He asked.

Olivia nodded. _"Sure, Mister Grant."_

Fitz swallowed hard. He couldn't help but think that his name sounded sexy on her tongue even though she was an insufferable pain in the ass at the moment. He stared at her full lips and all he could literally think about was fucking that smart mouth of hers with his tongue, his cock- anything to see if she would still be as sarcastic and sassy afterwards.

He blinked, snapping at himself. _She just got out of a relationship, you asshole!_

"Can we go now, please?"

Gripping the edge of the bar, she stood up on wobbly feet and she pushed her curls from her face. Then, with a smile on her lips, she looked up into his beautiful shade of blue eyes and nodded. "Yeah. But I'm not fucking you."

With his expression of nonchalance in place, Fitz fished out his wallet for his credit card and proceeded to pay for their tab as if he was not a tad bit fazed by her comment. Smirking, he retorted back; "Well I guess It's a good thing you're not my type hunh, fireball?"

Olivia rolled her eyes as she followed closely behind him out the door.

Right before they got into his car, Fitz could've sworn he heard her mumble something along the lines of: _"I'm everyone's type, boo."_

And he knew then from that moment on, that she was going to be trouble for him but for some reason, that didn't freak him out one bit.

...

"Do you want something to drink?" He asked as he put the keys in his lock.

Once inside the loft, he flicked on a dim light and the place lit up. Olivia was too drunk and too tired to take in his decor but as far as she could tell, his place was pretty neat for a guy.

"Yeah. Some water would be nice." She replied.

"Alright." Fitz nodded. "Make yourself at home." He suggested while pointing at the black leather stool behind the granite kitchen island.

After washing his hands under the western kitchen sink, he dried it with a clean towel before he reached into his fridge and grabbed two bottles of water. Pushing one of the bottles towards her across the counter, he said, "Drink up."

Then he was back in the fridge again, pulling out bread and other ingredients.

Olivia frowned, her lips forming a curious line around her bottle of water. "What are you doing?" She asked.

"Making a sandwich." Fitz replied. "Do you mind?"

Olivia shrugged. "It's your house." She mumbled. "You want some help?"

She wouldn't be much help really, considering she didn't know A-Z about cooking but she hated the feeling of being useless and plus she figured it was the polite thing to do.

"No." Fitz declined.

Rolling her eyes, she huffed childishly. "Fine. I take it back. I didn't even wanna help anyways."

So she sat behind the stool, completely useless and watched him as he began preparing the stove for his meal. While he waited for the pan to heat up on the stove, she watched some more as he started chopping off tomatoes, mincing up garlic and dicing up sweet peppers and sweet onions with expertise knife skills.

Olivia couldn't help but notice how the muscles of his arms flexed with every movement.

He was attractive. Stunning even. Annoyingly so, but attractive and stunning nonetheless and it pissed Olivia off that she noticed. She couldn't believe how watching him perform such a domestic task was turning her on beyond her control.

She shouldn't be undressing him with her eyes like this after having just broken up with her cheating ass boyfriend of two years. But she was. She was eyeballing the fuck out of him like he was the last man on earth and she wasn't sure what that said about her as a person.

"See something you like, pretty?" His deep baritone snapped her out of her drooling haze.

She had been too oblivious to the fact that he might feel her eyes literally undressing him. And now that's he's caught her in the act, he was being cocky about it.

"Don't flatter yourself, cowboy." She scoffed. "You ain't my type either."

He was smirking. And he looked too goddamn smug for her liking. But why was she tingling in places she shouldn't be?

Maybe it was those silky, thick curls that she's been fantasizing about running her fingers through all night. Or maybe, it was the color of his piercing blue eyes that captivated her the moment they met hers, and maybe it was and how those same blues twinkled with a beaming glow when he smiles. It could quite possibly be his cute little dimple that were barely noticeable unless he really smiled. Perhaps it was those yummy muscular arms.

Oh hell! Who was she kidding? It was everything! And she was drunkenly heartbroken!

"What's so funny?" She asked annoyingly and rightfully so.

Fitz lifted his head from the wooden cutting board and glanced at her sideways with his smile forever in place.

"You're pretty feisty for a little lady." He replied.

Twice tonight... twice he's called her feisty.

 _Feisty, fireball, little lady_ \- Olivia thought. _Bitch I'm grown!_

"Well you're pretty smug and annoying." She retorted.

He just shook his head; that same stupid, sexy, smug grin on his face.

She wanted to both slap it and kiss it off his face.

"What?!" Olivia snapped.

He chuckled. "Nothing." He said, shaking his head. "First I'm a cowboy, now I'm smug. See where I'm going with this?"

Olivia shook her head. "Nope."

"Hm," He sighed. "It's this really fascinating ongoing pattern."

Olivia took another sip of her water. She needed to do something to keep herself distracted. "Yeah?" She questioned.

Fitz nodded. "Yep."

"And what pattern might that be?" She asked.

Pointing his sharp chef's knife at her, he grinned again. "You fireball, are a bad boy lover." He replied.

Olivia nearly choked on her water. It's official. She hates him.

Composing herself, she twirled an unruly curl around her index finger and smiled. "So you have me all figured out already, don't you?"

Fitz shook his head, "On the contrary, ma'am," He said, "I never claim to have women figured out. Especially New Yorkers."

 _Smart-_ Olivia thought. She could take lessons from him because she likes to think of herself as a pretty good judge of character, but every time she thinks she has someone figured out, they turn out to be a bigger disappointment than the last.

 _Fucking Edison-cheating-ass-Davis!_

"You're not from New York." Olivia stated.

She could tell because he didn't look like your typical New Yorker. He had this air about him- as if he was still trying to fit in with a new crowd.

"Nope ma'am. I'm from California." He said.

Aah, California! Of course.

A few things came to mind when she thought of California and cockiness was front and center. It's no wonder.

"Why New York?" She asked curiously.

Fitz shrugged. "I needed a change of scenery."

Something about the way he said it told Olivia that it was as much- or rather as little from him as she was gonna get. Having gotten the memo, she didn't press or push him for more.

Caught up in their conversation, Olivia hadn't realized that he was through with his cooking. It wasn't until the smell of simmering tomato soup and bacon grilled cheese penetrated the air and the pungent odor hovered in the kitchen that her stomach started to grumble. It smelled like home.

With a ladle, he scooped two spoonful of the soup into a bowl and pushed it towards her across the table.

With the sandwiches in another large bowl, he joined her around the counter and sat next to her.

 _"Mangia."_

Whatever that even meant. Olivia tear into a piece of a perfectly grilled sandwich and dipped it into the soup. At the first bite, her eyes rolled, and a delightful moan escaped her lips as a burst of flavor awakened her taste-buds.

The tiny hint of cilantro and dill and garlic blended perfectly with the rich-tangy, creamy soup.

She was in heaven.

"Where'd you learn how to cook like that?" She asked as she dipped another piece of bread into the soup.

Meanwhile, Fitz took a huge bite of his sandwich and swallowed quickly. "That's a tale for another day." He replied. "But when you grew up like I did, certain things just become second nature."

Yet again, he wasn't gonna elaborate.

And if anything, that made Olivia more curious. She wanted to know what he meant by _"growing up like he did."_ Maybe he had a rough go of it growing up. She didn't know him well enough to say but she wanted to know.

What can she say? She has a soft spot for the underdogs. Even the ones that are attractive beyond legal levels and have dreamy blue eyes and smug grins.

* * *

...

"I can take the couch." Olivia said as she finished helping him dry the last of the used dishes.

Fitz shook his head. "It's not that comfortable." He told her. "You can take my bed."

Shrugging, Olivia let it go. She wasn't gonna argue with him. If he wanted to give her his bed, then she wasn't gonna refuse. At this point, she just wanted to close her eyes and forget that this whole day happened.

With the lights turned off and the doors securely locked, she followed him down what she presumed was his bedroom.

His bedroom decor wasn't much. Besides the normal dressers and tables, he had a huge closet and an adjoined bathroom in the room. His huge King sized mattress was big enough to hospitalize three people. It looked warm and comfortable and her body was basically screaming to make contact with it.

"Um, do you need a change of clothes or something?" Fitz asked.

"Yes." Olivia replied.

He marched towards the dresser and opened the third drawer, pulling out a grey shirt and a pair of boxers.

"You can change in the bathroom." He offered as he handed her the clothes.

"Thanks." Olivia smiled at him before she disappeared in the bathroom.

Closing the door behind her, she locked the door and stood in front of the mirror at the sink. She felt as though the mirror was mocking her. She looked like a hot mess with a broken heart in a stranger's bathroom. How fucking cliche was that?

She fought tooth and nail with her emotions as she continued to stare at her reflection in the mirror. She wouldn't let the tears fall. _She couldn't._ Not yet at least. She couldn't be the weak one. She didn't do this. And quite frankly, he wasn't worth it.

With that in mind, she sighed and wrapped her curls in a haphazard bun on top of her head. Deciding to get rid of the alcohol stench on her, she opened the faucet and allowed the water to heat up before she started stripping off all her clothes.

...

The boiled water felt delicious against her skin and she closed her eyes as the steam enveloped her. She still didn't cry. She couldn't because if she did, she would never stop and she couldn't bear the thought of having Fitz comfort her. He'd already done enough. He didn't sign up for her sad-pitiful parade. He didn't need that.

But that still didn't stop her from replaying her whole entire relationship with Edison over in her head. What more could she have done right to prevent this from happening? How was she not enough? Did she not stroke his fragile ego enough? More importantly, how could he claim to have loved her and yet didn't even think twice before sticking his dick in some other woman when the opportunity presented itself?

She knew it wasn't her fault but still she couldn't shake the thought that maybe if she hadn't been so closed off with walls built up, he wouldn't have felt the need to seek whatever was missing in their relationship with someone else.

Now she found herself wondering what the other woman looked like. What the other woman had that she was lacking. Did she know know about her and that her and Edison had been together for two fucking years? Was she married? Did she have kids? Did she have bigger boobs, softer hair, prettier eyes? Was she white, latina, or was she black like her? Did his mistress fuck him better than she did? Did he tell her he loved her too?

What had he promised her for her to willingly accept _The Other Woman_ title?

A thousand other series of questions swamped her head full and she slammed her hand on the tiled walls of the shower as tears filled her eyes. She fucking hated him. She hated him for doing this to her. For making her doubt herself as a woman. She didn't deserve this and she would never forgive him for making her feel like shit.

 _"You have too many walls, Liv."_ He'd always say.

Walls or not, he should've at least had the fucking decency to come to her like a respectable human being and hash it out with her. He should've kept it real with her. And yeah, maybe she would've still been heartbroken but she would've let him go and her dignity would've stayed intact.

Olivia blamed herself also. She should've known that's who he always has been. And she would've caught it way earlier if she didn't listen to all the white noise of people telling her how much of a perfect match they were for each other.

She never bought into the illusion of soul mates, happily ever afters and forevers. She always thought that those were sappy stories told to kids at a young age and truthfully, it wasn't fair. Life doesn't really work that way. Relationship is work and she believed in loyalty, respect and being your own person and not letting that relationship change you as a person. Or at least she did.

She loved Edison. She mightn't said it all the time like he wanted her to, but she did love him in her own way. She showed up when he needed her, she respected his opinions even when she didn't always agree and she continually rooted for him to thrive. She wasn't overbearing or high maintenance and she never asked too much of him.

Maybe that was it. _Maybe she didn't ask enough of him_. She never would have because that's not the kind of woman that she is. She could never rely on him like he would have wanted her to. She values her independence way too much.

But she loved him.

And what did that get her? Betrayal.

So maybe those walls were hard to knock down for a reason.

...

Stepping out of the shower fifteen minutes later, she noticed the basket of clean towels and took one to dry off.

She got dressed in record time before slipping out of the bathroom.

When she opened the door, he was just standing there, startling her nearly to death.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you." Fitz apologized.

"It's okay." Olivia replied.

"Okay." He nodded.

Fitz marched towards the bed and turned on the nightstand before turning off the overhead light in the ceiling.

Pulling the covers back, he got into bed and under the covers comfortably.

"What are you doing?" Olivia asked.

"I'm starting to think you can't tell when something is obvious." Fitz said.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Olivia cried. "We never said anything about sharing a bed. I thought you were taking the couch."

"I said the couch wasn't comfortable." Fitz reminded her. "So if I wasn't gonna let you sleep on it, what makes you think I'm gonna sleep on it?"

He had a good point.

"Don't be a smart ass." Olivia growled.

"Look, the bed is big enough for the both of us." Fitz said. "You stay on your side, I'll stay on my side. Does that sound fair to you?"

It did and Olivia was willing to compromise.

"With a pillow in between."

"What are you? Twelve?"

"You didn't have to take me home. I told you I could take care of myself but you insisted."

Fitz rolled his eyes. "Oh, you're welcome by the way."

"Whatever!" She stomped back in the bathroom like a spoiled child and returned with her retrieved bra.

There was no way that she was going to get into that bed with him bra-less.

"Can you turn around?" She asked, reemerging from the bathroom.

"Why?" Fitz asked.

"Cause I'm about to put a bra on." She replied. "Unless you wanna watch." She added sarcastically.

Fitz rolled his eyes again. She's so freaking frustrating!

"You have nothing I haven't seen before." He said.

He heard her scoff before she turned around, facing away from him and at the bathroom door.

And of course she always has some smart remarks. She always had to have the last word.

"I have _everything_ you haven't seen before." She mumbled just before she pulled his shirt over her head.

Just in time for Fitz to see the tattoos that covered her back.

 _Indeed she did._

...

When they lie in bed a few minutes later, a pillow in between them to keep the distance appropriate, Olivia looked up at the ceiling with wonder.

"Who was she?" She asked.

In the bathroom, there was still a bottle of pomegranate shampoo on his shelf and she was pretty sure it didn't belong to him. So unless he had an imaginary friend, or he happened to wash his hair with pomegranate shampoo, _(which she doubted he did because his hair smelled like chestnut and french vanilla bean)_ there was no clear explanation for that.

"Who was who?" Fitz asked; oblivious to her question.

"The pomegranate girl." She said.

Fitz chuckled. _Hah!_ _Pomegranate girl. Classic!_

"She wasn't the one."

"Hm." Olivia mumbled. "Did you hurt her?"

Fitz took a pause. He didn't really know how to answer that without feeling... He just didn't know.

"We both hurt each other." He replied. "Some wounds deeper than others."

Then they were both silent again.

Fitz could tell that Olivia was overthinking everything. Blaming herself, wanting answers to try and justify it. He knew because he knows what it feels like to be betrayed in the worst way possible by someone you used to love. He knew because he's been there and the experience isn't the least bit pleasant.

"Hey, fireball?"

Olivia smiled in spite of herself. Why was that nickname suddenly growing on her?

"Hunh?"

"Don't think about it too much?" He suggested. "It wasn't your fault. We make our choices in life all on our own and it's not your place to take the burden of others on your shoulders. _He cheated. He broke your trust. He hurt you._ That's on him. That's his cross bear." He declared. "Don't beat yourself up over it because there was nothing you could do about it. It's not something you did or didn't do. _The truth is, he just didn't love you enough_. And I'm so sorry about that but that's not your fault either. It's gonna hurt- maybe not now, or tomorrow but it will eventually. _Betrayal always does_. You're gonna be pissed off for a while so if you need someone to just kick it with between now and then and know a hundred-percent that they won't judge you, I'm here."

At that, Olivia reached between them under the covers and grabbed his hand. He obliged and quickly entwined their fingers together.

Fitz gave her hand a tight squeeze and turned his head to look at her. "You'll be alright, fireball."

He saw her smile in the dimly lit room. This time, it wasn't a sarcastic smile to throw him off. Though with sad eyes, her brown orbs still gleamed and her teeth still showed. It was a real smile and she looked like the most beautiful woman in the world to him at that moment. The best part about it, is that she was so natural at that moment. Makeup free and pure.

"You're good people, Ace."

Both smiling, they said nothing but it wasn't lost on either of them that they could be nice to each other if they wanted to.

"How do you know when someone is the one?" Olivia asked.

Fitz shrugged. "You just do."

"But how?"

"Because they'll see the good, the bad, the ugly and still want to stick around. Because you'll fight to the death for them. Because nothing will make sense when they're gone. Because everything will hurt less and you'll find yourself laughing a lot at the stupidest things that are complete and utter bullshit but it won't matter because they'll be the source of your happiness and joy. _Because they'll be your best friend_."

Olivia cried silently in her heart for the little girl inside her that wants to believe in that kind of love. And she also cried for the woman that had just gotten her heart broken into a million pieces.

"Do you really think that kind of love exist?" She asked.

"I don't know, fireball." Fitz replied truthfully. "But I like to believe that it does."

Silence engulfed them and Fitz simply let those last words settle between them because there were peaceful. Finger intertwined, Olivia's eyes grew heavier by the second as she watched the overhead fan spin in unabating circles. Minutes later, she was lulled to sleep faster than she ever would have anticipated. She blamed it on the softness of his sheets and pillows.

...

Sometime around dawn, Fitz stirred awake by the sound of blue birds singing in the early morning sky and the sight of the silver moon penetrating through his curtains. Sighing, he swallowed the dryness in his throat with a hankering for a glass of water.

But he couldn't get up if you paid him in gold and diamonds because wrapped around him was a certain little curly haired goddess that was stopping him from going to get that glass of water he was so in desperate need of. With her legs thrown over his thighs casually, her head rested on his shoulder and her hand lay flat against his heart, mimicking the rise and fall of his chest.

Looking down at her, Fitz couldn't help the smile that threatened to split his face in half. She looked absolutely beautiful and so peaceful. Then he remembered the pillow that was supposed to keep them from being entwined as they were right now and he had to bite the inside of his mouth to keep the laughter that wanted to boom out of him.

An unruly curl fell on her face and he gently reached to push it out of her face, subconsciously placing a kiss on her forehead in the process. She stirred a little bit in his arm and his chest went into overdrive. He didn't want her to wake up and pull away from him. So he wrapped his arm around her and began drawing invisible circles on her arm with his fingers; hoping to lull her back to the land of dreams. Her lips parted as she scratched her nose with her fingers curled in a claw. Fitz swore it was the cutest thing he'd ever seen. Then she started making soft little purrs of approval at the contact of his fingers on her flesh. And damn if that didn't stir his dick awake too. He tried his damndest to ignore those little noises she was making as he continued his soft caresses, reveling in the feeling of her body pressed against his and her warm breathing against his neck. _Water be damned._

 _/_

Olivia knew the moment he woke up but instead of feeling embarrassed of the position they came to be inconveniently some time in the middle of the night, she scoot closer in his arm and settled relaxingly in his warm embrace. She felt so comfortable and safe cocooned in his arms that the thought of moving was worse than death. And when he pushed her hair out of her face, a small smile graced her lips. Now, he was drawing little circles on her arm and she couldn't think of anything more heartwarming and comforting.

* * *

 _ **Days later...**_

Living off her hotel mini bar was starting to not work for Olivia. She's managed to shut the world out for a full seventy-two hours but she knew that sooner or later, she was going to have to face the sound of the music. And she really didn't want to.

Getting up and out of bed, she wrapped a robe around her and made a brief call to the hotel's room service for something edible to eat before she disappeared in the bathroom with her mobile cell phone in hand. She turned on the smartphone and she was bombarded with a cacophony of notification alerts. Her heart clamped up and her stomach roiled when she read his name on the screen. In the past eighteen hours alone, he's called her about twenty seven times and left her sixteen voicemails.

Why was he even bothering to call her? They had absolutely nothing to be civil to each other about. He did what he did and she said her piece about it. What was there left to be said? She thought she made it more than clear that she wanted absolutely nothing to do with him when she stormed out on him at the restaurant?

"Shake my damn head." Olivia murmured as she squeezed toothpaste onto her brush.

She started brushing her teeth, looking at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. She looked like last week's trash with her disheveled curls entangled together like the Spider's Web.

"I'm literally garbage." She chuckled to herself.

And just then, the phone started vibrating and chirping incessantly on the sink. Looking down at it, she saw his number popping up on her screen again. Cursing him seven days to hell, she wondered if it was possible to get a restraining order against him for calling her phone too damn much.

That couldn't be healthy.

So she decided to pick up. It was the only way she'll find some peace of mind.

"What?" She answered around her toothbrush.

"Oh Liv, thank God. I was starting to get worried. I've been calling you for the past few days and you haven't been answering."

Even his voice made her want to crawl out her skin and run.

"That's cause you don't pay my damn bills." She replied blatantly and purposely rude. "What do you want?"

"Liv, I'm really sorry about what I did." He said. "I never meant to hurt you like that-"

Oh for God's freaking sakes! What did he think his little half-assed apology was going to do for her? It wouldn't change the fact that he betrayed her and disrespected her in the worse way possible. It wouldn't make the hurt that he caused her to disappear. And it certainly wasn't gonna bring her back.

"I'm coming to drop off the keys and getting my things out of _the apartment_ today. I'd really appreciate it if you could not be there when I'm doing that." She cut him off.

"Olivia-"

" _After what you've done_... after the way you've disrespected me and drag your feet all over me like the piece of paper stuck to the bottom of your shoe, I don't wanna hear dick from you other than _'Yes Olivia. I can do that'_." She really didn't want to have to raise her voice at him and exhaust her energy on him but the anger and hatred she felt for him was still aflame and he wasn't helping much by adding gasoline to the flame. "Let's try again," She huffed. "Edison, I'll be coming to grab my things _at the apartment_ and dropping off the keys, would you be so kind and respectful enough to not be there when I showed up."

He said nothing for about five seconds.

Then she heard him sigh deeply before he asked, "At what time will you be stopping by?"

Olivia thought about it for a minute. She had to get one of those storage rooms and she had to rent one of those U-Haul trucks to transport her things to the storage unit temporarily while she went hunting for an apartment that was at her taste and price range.

"Three o'clock." She replied.

He sighed again. Even that was annoying. Olivia never expected that there could ever be a day when she wished someone would just stop breathing and existing all together.

"So that's really it for us, Liv?" He asked. "We're not gonna try to work it out?"

Fuck's sake. She was literally seconds away from pulling her hair out.

 _"There's nothing to try to work out."_ Olivia replied.

Then he was silent for a full minute. And for a second, Olivia thought that he finally took a hint and hung up.

But as always the disappointment that he was, his voice echoed in her ears again. "What are we telling people?" He asked.

Confused, Olivia raised her eyebrows, forgetting that he couldn't see her. "What?"

"We hang out in the same group circle. I have a reputation to uphold so when they ask why we aren't together anymore, what's our story. What are we telling them?"

Had she gone deaf or had he really just asked her that?

"What?" She asked again, making sure she heard him right.

Is somebody listening to this shit too or was this some nightmare she was in and would be soon waking up from? Because this couldn't be reality. _His reputation_... Oh sweet baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph and everything that's holy! He had the nerves, Lord... _the audacity_ _to ask her_ what they were going to tell _his_ friends _about his cheating ass_ when they asked why she wanted to rip him to shreds and feed him to the wolves. Lord Jesus, fix it because If she ever sees him again... Hmm. Why hadn't she slapped the fuck out of him before storming out of that restaurant when she had the chance?

"Edison?" She said.

"Liv?"

"Do me one last favor..."

"What is it?"

"Dig a deep hole somewhere far in the desert and go fuck yourself!" Then she hung up the phone in his face before he had the chance to apologize to her one more time.

888

When she had stopped by at the apartment to get her things, she worked efficiently, being as steadfast as possible because she didn't want him to come home thinking she had finished grabbing all that she needed only to find her there. Olivia wasn't sure she'd be too pleasant in that scenario.

She had managed to load up everything into the rented vehicle in less than two hours. And it wasn't until she was circling around the mostly empty room, taking it all in- closing that chapter of her life in the book so to speak- that everything just started hitting her all at once. It was really over between them and she was very at peace with that decision. As a woman, she felt it was necessary that she was able to look herself in the mirror in the morning and not see a fool for staying with someone who could stab her in the back the way Edison had. Maybe in time she'll be able to forgive him for his betrayal but she would never let herself forget either.

She lit up a flame at _what was once_ _their_ stove and burned all their pictures together in a large stainless bowl. And in a box that she marked **_returns_** sitting in the living room floor was all the jewelries and gifts he'd ever given her with a little note that read: **_"Give them to Lisa. She's good at taking my leftovers."_** It was petty of her. She knew that but she didn't feel any remorse over it and she certainly would not be losing any sleep over it.

And it wasn't until she was locking the door behind her and slipping the spare key under the mat for him that she let the tears fall down her cheeks. They weren't tears of sadness but they weren't tears of happiness either. She felt free though.

...

The full effect of the break up hadn't hit Olivia until two full weeks later when she'd finally settled into her new apartment in The Upper East-side. She thought that after cleansing herself of everything Edison and changing her phone number, any and all remnants of him would be gone out of her life. She thought he would just disappear like magic into thin air as if she didn't give him two years of her life. But he didn't. He lived in her memories and those were the hardest to deal with and get rid of.

One morning, she woke up and looked at herself in the mirror and just completely broke down in ugly, horrible sobs. She couldn't believe she was that girl. The type that was so closed off with glaciers build so tightly, nothing could penetrate through. The type that could drive her _ex-boyfriend_ into another woman's panties.

She coped during the day but it was the nights that were lonely. Having not slept alone in a very long time, she would feel the coldness next to her in the middle of the night and wrap herself around the blanket and just cry all over again. And when she could shed no more tears, she would turn on Netflix and have a marathon of F.R.I.E.N.D.S while binging on red wine and popcorn.

She felt like she was losing her mind when she started entertaining the thought of adopting twelve cats. She hated those stupid freaking commercials. You know the ones that come on with the beaten animals in cages? The one where they play the saddest fucking song in the entire world and put little subtitles of what the dog or cat is saying or thinking? The one where the camera zooms in real close on their eyes and you can see... more like feel their sad eyes poking a hole into your soul and suddenly, you find yourself needing a damn box of kleenex tissues? Yep. That's exactly the one.

God, she loathed that commercial!

For some fucking reason, it always came on when she was feeling the crappiest and stuffing her face with food. It's like they planned that shit for her to see it in the exact moment when she was feeling the loneliest and most vulnerable. That way, she's absolutely compelled to make the call and demand to be sent all of them animals so she could nurse them to health. Ain't that some shit though?

Yes. She'd become that girl. And whoever came up with that commercial should be shot!

...

When she grew tired of the loneliness, she decided to visit her parents at their cottage in the Hampton where they'd retired to live their blissful lives a couple of years ago. As soon as her mother opened the door for her, the sadness in eyes was so vivid that the older woman took her in her arms instantly, rocking her back and forth at the door until she let out a loud sob.

They eventually went inside the beautiful stone home and sat on the couch in the living room. She lie on her mother's thighs and the older woman soothed her by running her fingers through her hair like she had done for her all her life.

Their cook, Mrs. Robinson brought in hors' d'ouvres and tea for them a little while later and Olivia ate in silence with her knees folded to her chest.

"How's dad and where is he?" Olivia asked.

"Your father's fine." Her mother replied. "He went with Mr. Robinson to the golf course. Something about needing to get away from me."

Olivia raised her eyebrows. "What? Are you guys okay?"

Her mother dismissed her with a wave. "We're fine. He's just coming up for air from the pot of gold."

"Oh." Olivia said confused. Then she gave it a second for what her mother said to settle and she visibly shuddered; slamming her hand over her eyes to block the images that conjured from that statement out of her head. "Jesus, mom!" She exclaimed. "Where's your chill?"

"I have none." Her mother replied. "Now, stop deflecting. What happened Livia, honey?" Maya asked.

Olivia shrugged. A bittersweet smile forced across her lips and she stopped a tear in it's track from falling. "It didn't work out, I guess." She replied, barely on an audible whisper.

"Oh sweetie." Maya pulled her against her chest again and she cried again until her eyes were puffy and hurting. "I'm so proud of you baby girl."

Olivia was downright confused. What was there to be proud of? She ran every potential good guy out of her life with her walls someway, somehow. How could her mother be proud of that?

"Why?" She asked. "I'm just a stupid girl with a bunch of stupid walls that drives everyone away."

Her mother chuckled into her hair as she soothed it back. "You're your own person, Livia." Her mother said. "Those walls honey, they're up for a reason and you're not stupid. One day, the right person that's for you is gonna come along and their love for you is gonna be the wrecking ball that cracks those walls and crumble them down. The others tried and fail. Edison tried and fail. _They weren't for you_."

"Hm," Olivia pondered her mother's words over for a few silent minutes, "What if I'm not even into guys?"

"Oh Mon Dieu, Olivia. Don't be ridiculous." Her mother chastised.

Pulling out of her mother's arms, she sat up again and looked at the woman who gave life to her. "I'm serious, Ma." She blinked. "What if those walls are build up because they're resistant to the male gender. What if I'm having an _epiphany_ and my subconscious is trying to tell me something? What if my one true love in life is really a woman?"

"You're not gay, Olivia." Her mother dismissed the thought blatantly and reached for her cooling tea on the glass table.

"You don't know that!" Olivia protested.

Her mother rolled her eyes at her dramatics. "Do you find girls attractive?"

Olivia shrugged. "Yes. This is New York, mom. I see a bunch of badass, attractive Queens all the time."

"And how do they make you feel?"

"The shrink thing doesn't work on me, mom!" Olivia complained.

"Well you're being ridiculous!" Maya said. "Do you think about the female genitalia?"

"Oh my God!" Olivia smacked her hands on her face and groaned loudly. "This conversation is officially over!"

"You're not gay." Her mother sang.

 _Just no!_

"Now that we've established that..." Olivia puffed out a sigh, "I'm just a fuck up then. That makes me feel so much better."

Her mother smiled sadly at her. "I wish you could see yourself the way I see you." The petite woman cried, her voice cracking with emotion. "You're such an amazing human being and you know what you want in life, Livia. I wish that I knew that about myself when I was your age. If I could go back in time and be in my twenties again, I would have given anything to be half the woman that you are now. You're not a fuck up. You just don't settle, and I'm infinitely proud of you for that."

Olivia was so grateful for her parents. Honestly, she could say that she definitely lucked out with them because her mother wasn't one of those parents that sat around and literally judged her for her shortcomings. And she wasn't always harping and hounding at her throat every second of the day to produce grandbabies for her to spoil. Both her parents were pretty laid back people and she knew that no matter what she did, she could always come back to them and they would love her just the same.

So while she was going through this period of self-pity in her life, she was so thankful for having hit the jackpot with a mother as caring and loving as Maya Pope.

Taking her mother's hand in hers, she entwined their fingers together and looked at the petite woman across her with a smile. She was her role model, her doppelganger... her ride or die. "You're my one true love, Ma."

"Oh honey..."

They hugged again for the longest time and surely, Olivia started feeling significantly better than when she walked into the door, a broken mess. It still hurt. Healing would take time but eventually she'll be okay.

At that exact moment, a pair of blue eyes flashed in her head and she couldn't help the smile that crossed her lips.

 _"You'll be alright, fireball."_ He'd told her and today for the first time in weeks, she started to believe it.

She'll be just fine.

"Fuck!" She cursed.

"What is it?" Maya asked.

"Dad's gonna be pissed. He really liked Edison's cheating ass."

Maya scoffed. "Please. Trust me, your father won't miss him one bit. He respected the fact that he knew his politics but other than that, your father always thought that he was too conservative, too boring. He supported the relationship because he thought that Edison made you happy. It's all we ever really want, baby. We want what makes you happy. We're always team Olivia."

Olivia smiled into her mother's shirt and sighed as she wrapped her arms tighter around the petite woman. "I missed you, momma."

"I missed you too honey."

"Will you make me your famous homemade mac n' cheese then?"

Her mother smiled, kissing her forehead. "Of course, baby."

...

Olivia spent the rest of the afternoon with her mom and Mrs. Robinson in the garden. It was a beautiful afternoon in the Hampton and they just enjoyed the beautiful day together, stuffing their face with delicious dishes and one too many cocktails.

By the time sunset came, Olivia was kissing her mother and Mrs. Robinson goodbye with the promise to visit again soon enough.

"Give your father a call. He misses you. I'm sure he'll be gutted that he missed you today."

"I will." Olivia promised. "I love you mom."

"Till the sun don't shine baby girl." Her mom replied.

And with that said, she climbed into her awaiting taxi, ready to experience the world with a new face. But first things, first, she needed a friend by her side.

She just hoped the offer still stood.

* * *

 _Part two coming up soon!_


	2. Chapter 2

Ten o'clock at night, a tired Fitzgerald Grant hopped out of his truck in front of his brick apartment loft with keys in hand after a long, productive day of work.

The plan was to get inside his apartment, fix himself a drink and something to eat then cuddle up in front of his flat screen TV and catch a rerun of the Mets' baseball game. They were dominating in the World Series so far and he wagered a lot of money on those fuckers against the Cardinals with Stephen.

What he didn't expect when he jumped out of his truck though, was to find a very pretty little lady in a hoodie sitting on his steps waiting for him.

He took pause in front of the steps that led towards his home and his body stiffened instantly and the displayed expression on his face was the purest form of surprise.

He hadn't seen her since the day after she spent the night over at his place and honestly, he never thought he would see her again because after all, the world isn't as small as they say it is. New York alone is a whole world in itself.

So surprise didn't even begin to describe what he was feeling. After the shock registered, his heart just went into overdrive, nearly jumping out of his chest. It was beating so erratically. And his soul filled with a joy so overwhelming, it was threatening to burst also.

He was so happy to see her that the sight of her became almost too overwhelming to bear.

"Hi." He greeted softly.

Even in the darkness of the night, her smile was radiant.

"Hi, Ace." She replied.

Fitz couldn't help but smile back at her. Strangely enough, he also missed that little nickname.

"What are you doing here?" He asked.

It was then that she stood up and he was able to really see her, dressed comfortably in black sweats and a hoodie.

 _God, she looked cute!_

She then descended the steps that led towards him and took down her hoodie. Much like the night she slept over, her hair was a hot mess of curls tied haphazardly on top of her head with a thin Nike headband taming the fallen curls from being all over the place.

 _Damn! Why did she have to be so fucking cute?_

"I need a friend." She said.

Her dark-chocolate brown eyes were gleaming under the street lights and the vulnerability in her voice nearly killed him.

Her statement didn't even register to his ears because all he kept hearing was the pain that she was trying so hard to mask from him.

And suddenly, he wanted to bash the bastard's face for causing her such pain.

"Does that offer still stand?" She asked, almost shyly.

Snapping out of it, Fitz nodded. "Of course." He replied. "Are you hungry?"

Was he kidding? All she seems to do lately is eat. She was always hungry.

"Yes." She replied.

He smiled and his blue eyes twinkled. Already, Olivia was feeling a lot better comparing to the start of her day. It's almost as if this morning never even happened and now more than ever she truly believed that she'd be okay. Edison wouldn't break her with his nasty betrayal. She'd grieve the loss of what could have been for a while but eventually, she'll move on to bigger and better things.

As she took his extended offering hand, a warm electric feeling ran through her veins. And when he opened the passenger's door to his truck for her with that same smile still on his face, her heart melted.

 _That smile is gonna be the death of me_ \- Olivia thought after he closed the door. Only after he made sure she was safely buckled in her seat.

 _Such a gentleman, he is._

Turns out she liked him just fine when she's sober.

"Where are we going?" Olivia asked out of curiosity.

He climbed behind the driver's seat, buckled his seatbelt and started the powerful engine with a roar. With a smirk, he looked over at her and shrugged. "Wherever the road takes us."

"Well mister, that's very poetic." Olivia teased.

Sighing heavily, he shrugged again. "What can I say? I'm feeling charming tonight."

Then, he put the truck in reverse and they were on their way.

...

So it turns out, the road led them to a pizza joint on 6th avenue in Brooklyn.

"Here, you'll find the best pizza in all of New York City." He told her as they walked through the double doors leading inside the restaurant.

"Is that so?" Olivia prompted.

"Yes. In all of New York." He repeated for precision.

As soon as they walked in, this overwhelming feeling of welcome rushed over Olivia because the entire restaurant erupted in cheerful greeting to them and fast talk in a foreign language that she couldn't even begin to understand if she wanted to.

It wasn't for lack of knowledge either. She's sure she could pick up on what they were saying if they weren't speaking so damn fast.

What shocked her the most was that all that excitement was for Fitz and he was speaking their language too and they looked all so at joy.

Was he some kind of famous icon and she totally missed the memo because she was so condescending?

Nope. That wasn't it. She didn't do a google search on him or nothing but she was pretty sure.

 _Maybe he was just that likable._ That had to be it or she was going to feel so freaking stupid.

Soon, all that overwhelming excitement was passed onto her as she was enveloped in hugs and introduced to all the really happy strangers.

...

When they were finally seated at the table, Fitz started to explain.

Turns out, he was pretty tight with the owner of the little pizza shop. The business is run by real Italians with pure Sicilian blood running in their veins and they were loyal to a fault. Once they decide they like you, you were family to them. You became family to them with no questions asked. Simple as that.

And they liked Fitz. A lot. Hence the very warm welcome.

"What do you want?" Fitz asked as they browsed the menu.

"Hmm..." Olivia hummed.

There were so many mouth-watering, delicious options to choose from and it didn't help that the entire space around her smelled like God's kitchen.

"I can't choose!" Olivia cried, hiding her face behind the menu. "I want everything!"

"It's settled then." Fitz said, closing his menu. "We'll have everything."

Popping her head back up, Olivia blinked at him, her eyes glued to his face as he he had grew a second head.

"You wouldn't." She said, almost daringly.

...

So because he didn't like to be dared, Fitz ordered everything.

Well not really but he nearly damn did! And he would have if Olivia didn't freak out on him.

Instead, they both ordered the footlong parmesan meatball sub with a side of bacon-cheese fries. Then, they shared a medium sized pizza together and they made sure to go crazy with all sorts of delicious toppings.

Everything felt good. Olivia was so full then, she couldn't stop laughing. She doesn't normally make a habit of eating heavy food at ten o'clock at night with a hot, sexy hunk of a man but then again, there was always a first time for everything.

When they'd finally bring themselves to get up and out of their seats, they both thanked everyone who contributed into bringing heaven to their tongues. And even though Mr. Azzara insisted that their late dinner was on the house, Fitz had still fished his wallet out of his pocket and paid for their tab, also leaving a huge, generous tip with the promise of coming back soon again.

Leftovers in paper plates wrapped in brown paper bag, they left the restaurant. Instead of hopping back in the truck and calling it a night, they decided to take a leisure stroll to walk off their dinner. Arm in arm, they walked a couple of blocks in comfortable silence, marveling at the beauty of the City of Lights. It was amazing.

Olivia was the first to speak and break their comfortable silence. "Thank you... for tonight."

In acknowledgement, Fitz entwined their fingers together and gave her a small smile. "How are you, fireball?" He asked.

"I'm great." Olivia smiled back.

And she was. For the first time in a while.

She lay her head on his shoulder and they continued to walk until they found a homeless man to give the leftovers to. The man was beyond overjoyed. It made Olivia want to cry.

"I saw my mom, today." Olivia started to tell him.

His eyes turned to her again and Olivia loved that she had his undivided attention. And she also loved that he seems to care about what she was saying even if he couldn't even be bothered about it. "Yeah?"

"I needed to feel grounded and she's pretty good at that for me." Olivia continued. "But once she started to ask me about how the female genitalia made me feel, I had to go."

That got a laugh out of him. He broke into a laughter so loud and contagious, Olivia couldn't help but feel proud of herself for being the cause of it.

"Jesus! How did that conversation come to be?" He asked.

"We were talking about my _impenetrable_ walls and in my period of wallowing in self-pity, I might've said that the reason I've managed to run off every guy out of my life is because I'm really a closeted lesbian deep inside."

It took everything Olivia had not to drop on the concrete ground and roll over to die of laughter at the expression on Fitz's face. His face got so hot and red, it was ridiculous!

"Oh my God! I'm not a lesbian, Fitzgerald!" She hit his arm playfully. "You can stop being all hot and bothered."

"Eh, I totally wasn't picturing you and another girl going at it. I promise." Fitz said, running his hand through his silky curls.

"Bite me, Fitz! Your poker face sucks."

"But it's such a beautiful face." He said.

Olivia rolled her eyes at him. "Conceited much."

"I don't want to bring it up but how are you doing after the whole-"

"Doing fine." Olivia interrupted. They were having such a great time together, she didn't want anything bad ruining it. "I did the whole binge eating thing, I'm pretty sure I gained like ten pounds in the last weeks but it doesn't seem like it because I cry myself to sleep when the loneliness hits me. I'm going through all the normal stages but I've yet to leave burning shit on his doorstep. Other than that, I'm dealing with it. I'm healing. And I'll be ready to move on soon. I'll be alright."

"Wanna go leave the shit on his doorstep right now?" Fitz asked.

Now, it was Olivia's turn to burst into laughter. He was the best, honestly. She could totally see herself being his friend forever at that exact moment.

"You'd do that for me?" She asked.

Fitz nodded. "Fuck. I'm game if you are, sweetheart."

"I'll remember that the next time I need a partner in crime." Olivia said.

"Please do." He winked at her then he suddenly stopped walking.

"What's wrong?" Olivia asked.

"I got the greatest idea." Fitz said.

Olivia looked up at him with curiosity. "What is it?"

"You need to rage. Like scream really hard or beat the shit out of something. Just get it all out of your system."

That sounded like fun.

"Where would we do that at this time of the night?" Olivia asked.

"I know just the place." Fitz replied. "Are you in?"

 _Fuck it... Why not?_ Olivia thought. It's not like she had anything better to go do.

"I'm in." She smiled.

They walked back the short way to his truck and climbed in. Fitz made a stop at one of the twenty four hour liquor stores a few block from where they parked to buy two bottles of wine and a pack of ice. He told her they'd need it for the aftermath of what he had planned for her. Olivia not knowing what that thing was decided to just be carefree and trust him.

About ten minutes of driving, they were pulling up at an empty gym parking lot.

"It's closed." Olivia said.

"I know that." Fitz nodded. "C'mon. Let's go."

Olivia carried their wine and ice while following after him with a crowbar in hand.

...

Fitz loved her sense of adventure. He loved that she was down for anything and he appreciated the fact that she trusted him enough to go blind on this with him.

He owned the little gym. Since he was a little boy, his dream had always been to own a boxing gym. He'd been a fighter his whole life, so when he stumbled on the space with the foreclosing sign one morning almost three years ago, he jumped on the offer to buy it from the bank. The space had previously been an abandoned warehouse but he build it from the ground up and turned it into a successful business. He made his dream come true.

And now, he was about to break into it because he absolutely loved the half-petrified-but-totally-excited look on that pretty girl's face. He thought he just might do anything if it meant keeping that look on her face.

"We're breaking into a gym!" Olivia whisper-yelled. "I've never been arrested before. This is so wrong!"

Fitz couldn't help but laugh. "If we pull this off, shall we go pro? Plan a heist " _The Italian Job"_ style and go live The American Dream?"

"Assuming we don't get caught?" Olivia questioned.

"Fuck that." Fitz whispered. "We're a pair of smart-asses. We're too good to get caught."

"Okay." Olivia chuckled. "So what are we thinking? Federal Reserve Bank? The biggest heist on U.S. soil since 1990?"

"No, fuck that too." Fitz said. "We want diamonds and money. How do you feel about DeBeers or Tiffany's?"

"Ooh, I'll gladly be the look-out if you promise to steal me something big and shiny." Olivia replied.

Fitz looked up from the lock and straight into her eyes. She was beaming; smiling the most gorgeous smile he'd ever seen. Her brown eyes were glowing. She was happy even if it was momentary and temporary. It's all that mattered. But the best part about it all was that feeling deep inside... it was almost hard to explain but the best way Fitz could describe it was the sense of _belonging_. Like at that exact moment, in this dark parking lot about to break into his own place of business... and looking into her eyes, they belonged and there was nobody else in the entire world he'd rather be doing this with. And that didn't help much with the urge he had to slam his lips against hers and kiss her silly right then.

Almost instantly, he remembered why they were here. She needed a friend. His selfish man-whore desires would have to take a back seat this time. He pushed the thought in the far-back of his mind. He could think about it all he wanted. But reacting on those desires were a whole completely different thing. _Perhaps another time-_ he said to himself.

So instead, he mirrored back her smile with a wink. _Big and shiny_. He'll definitely keep that in mind. "Done and done, fireball."

Smiling to himself, Fitz realized he liked this little conversation. He was actually learning a lot.

So he continued, "Where would we go into hiding while pending investigations?"

She shrugged, looking cute as fuck. "I don't know. Somewhere warm with white sand beaches." She said smiling.

"Any preferences?"

"I say hide right under their nose." Fitz was also impressed with her thought process and her ability to think so quickly on her feet. "They're not stupid. They'll probably expect us to be using our passports for travels while on the run with all that money we'll have. They're not stupid but they're predictable so they'll have all airports surrounded and whatnot but if we have a boat waiting at the shore for us, let's say midnight tops with a getaway car on the flip side, we should make it to Belize in no time on a little beach sipping martini and toasting to a job well done."

 _Atta girl._

He laughed. This time he couldn't hold it in anymore for the sake of being discreet considering they were breaking and entering into a place of business that she didn't yet know was his. She was just too goddamn good. Too darn fascinating for him to handle. He was amazed, impressed, mesmerized, blown away. How many more ways could summarize just how intriguing and smart she was? He loved this girl. The realization hit him like a ton of bricks. He knew what he felt and it scared him but goddamn it, he was in love with this girl! And he was very at peace with that.

Tongue tied, he snapped out of it when he realized he was staring for way too long. "Belize hunh?"

She nodded, biting her lips. "Yeah. I've always wanted to go."

Well. Well. "I'm gonna need a lot of sunscreen. But with all the money we'll have, that should be no issue."

She smiled that breathtaking smile his way again and shook her head at him. "No. It shouldn't." She agreed.

 _Big and shiny. And Belize._ He was definitely going to keep that in mind for a long time.

With those three words safely locked into memory, he flicked his wrist with a twist while she wasn't looking and he easily manipulated his set of keys into the locks; resulting in clicking the door open.

"Gold!" He wiggled his eyebrows.

She looked surprise and before the look could disappear from her face, he pulled her in through the back door.

...

"Wow..." She whispered.

She was turning in circles as she marveled at the place. Fitz couldn't help but watch her expression as he realized he cared what she thought of it while she didn't know that it belonged to him.

His gym wasn't like the typical gym you see everyday. The place was big enough to separate and expend. If you're a customer and you're looking for a basic workout, there were cardio machines, weights, power racks, etc... and if you were looking for something more relaxed, yoga classes were available three times a week and once a week, Zumba classes. He had a vision when he opened this gym; the boxing ring was always a part of it and he had found a way to make it fit. And over the past three years, he's watched bad-ass men and women walk those mats and kick some serious ass. The best of the best of pros in the sports entertainment business have trained here. He was proud of this place so to see her gushing over it was everything to him.

"How have I never been to this place before?" She asked in wonderment.

Fitz smiled. "You want the tour?"

"Can we?" Olivia asked with raised eyebrows.

God, she was so darn cute! He couldn't keep up with her cuteness tonight.

"We're in, aren't we?"

He took the wine bottles from her hand and stick them inside the bag of ice to keep them cool and placed it on the mat around the boxing ring then proceeded to give her a tour of the whole building, minus his office, the trainers room and locker rooms because then, he'd basically be announcing himself as the owner and that would ruin the whole breaking in adventure.

"Do you know how to box?" Fitz asked.

Olivia shook her head innocently. "No. I was a swimmer and a gymnast in high school. I know nothing about boxing."

"That's alright." Fitz said. "We're gonna get in that ring together right now and by the time we leave it, you'll be skilled on how to kick my ass. Deal?"

"Deal."

They shook on it and Fitz climbed in first, holding the rope for her after they'd gotten rid of their shoes and strapped up in proper boxing gears. Safety first. Always.

"Ready?" Fitz asked.

She looked nervous. It was cute.

But she still nodded. "Yes."

"Atta girl."

Gloves in hands, she already looked deadly and she didn't even know it.

"Show me your stance." Fitz said.

Standing straight, right foot front, left foot back, she looked like a natural with her gloved hands in the proper position, shielding her face.

He walked behind her and straightened her shoulders. "You're tense." He said. "You're doing all the right things but you're tense. You have to relax your shoulders." He massaged the knots in her shoulders and rolled her shoulders back until he felt her relax under his hands.

"Perfect. Now you're ready."

Mitts in hands, he stepped back in front of her and held his hands up to her. "We're gonna start with a little warm up. This move is the right cross, left jab."

He demonstrated and instructed her how to do it before allowing her to throw a couple of punches at him.

The first punch Olivia threw at him hurt her more than it hurt him which was ridiculous but as he demonstrated more, she picked up on the rhythm fairly quickly.

"Alright," He nodded his approval. "Wanna pick up the pace a little bit?"

"Hell yes."

Three or four rounds later, she could differentiate the movements and he barked his instructions with more confidence in her.

"Left knee, left jab, right cross,"

He followed her every movement, always ready to collect her hits and when she did it wrong, he showed her the many ways a worthy opponent in a ring could fuck her up if this was a real fight.

He continued to bark more orders. "Switch knees, one-two, one-two, back roundhouse, uppercut-"

Olivia found her rhythm then. She understood the patterns now. Before he called them, she knew what to do and that's when she really started to get into it. They moved around the mat in synchronization as he called the different combinations of movements to her and meeting every jab. Her mind now an empty blank, she only focused on his voice as she threw blow after blow in his hand. Sweat started dripping from her forehead, down her face, in her eyes, blurring her visions. But she kept up.

Her chest started to tighten, her heart rate picking up and her every muscle started aching. It felt like death and she nearly gave up when her legs started sagging underneath her but he threw a punch at her unexpectedly and it was the wake up call she needed. Out of quick reflex, she ducked and he smiled.

"You got anger, fireball. Unleash it. Every frustration, everything you're holding up inside right now, push it all in your fist and let it out."

Thoughts of Edison's cheating ass clouded her mind and suddenly this lightness came about her and a dose of adrenaline pumped in her veins, making her nearly ready to explode with energy. Then, she was flying, not at all on this earth, the purest form of gravity and she unleashed. Her arms and legs suddenly felt lighter which increased her speed and she hammered punch after punch, kick after kick into the mitts.

It was a high. Better than any drug ever invented. It was freeing.

"Yes!" Fitz shouted. "That's it. Harder, faster! C'mon. Jab, jab, jab, left hook, right hook, cross, high knee, jab!"

She was going hard but forgetting the most important thing.

"Breathe, Olivia. Breathe."

Three sharp exhale then, "Again! Hook left, jab low, knees, uppercut, shuffle, cross-jab."

It felt so good to not feel. Olivia was ready to weep from the high.

Then abruptly, "Stop!"

The mitts were lowered and she didn't know what to do with her body and all that pent up energy.

"Fuck!" Olivia shouted.

Her lungs were on fire. Every breath she took felt like a ripple of pain to her chest. She swallowed the dryness in her throat as she wiped the sweat off her forehead using her forearm, then realizing that her hands her trembling. Bend over with her hands on her knees, her legs started shaking and aching, threatening to give way underneath her. But it still all felt so good!

"Come here." Fitz was now standing in front of her sans-mitts with arms wide open.

He took her into a hug, smiling into her hair. "You're okay?" He asked.

"What the hell was that?" Olivia asked when they pulled away.

" _That_ was you raging and loving every second of it." Fitz replied. "How do you feel?"

"A lot like death." Olivia replied just before she collapsed on the mat.

Fitz was smiling as he looked down on her. "Yeah, it tends to feel that way after."

...

When Fitz came back with the bag of ice and their wine, she was now sitting up on the mat with legs stretched out. She had taken off her hoodie and was now only in a push-up sports bra.

Once again, he saw her tattoos peering from under the straps of her bra and he wondered for a moment what it was and what it meant, but the sight of her all sweaty clouded his vision.

"God you're such a life saver." She said when she saw the bag of ice in his hand.

Reaching for it, she took a handful and popped a few cubes in her mouth, then using the rest to rub on her arms, around her neck and everywhere else she was sweating.

Fitz knew she wasn't doing this intentionally to rattle him up but she was driving him crazy nonetheless. The sport-bra she was wearing were pushing her breasts up in a round bulge, making them look absolutely luscious. Glistening beads of sweat trickled down her toned stomach into her pierced belly button.

 _Fuck!_

She needed to put that sweater back on before he forgets he's supposed to be a friend and take her right against that mat.

 _Double-fuck!_ Those thoughts needed to scatter. Fast!

Deciding that tearing his eyes off her was probably a great idea, he popped the corks off one of the bottles of wine and handed it to her before opening the other one for himself.

They didn't talk about nothing as they enjoyed their beverage. And if Olivia was aware that he had been ogling the ever loving fuck out of her just minutes before; she didn't say nothing about that either.

"How do you know Italian?" Olivia asked.

She had been curious about that ever since the first night when she decided to go home with him. He had mentioned something about the way he grew up and when she had asked, he said it was a tale for another day.

So here they were, another day and she loves tales.

"What do your tattoos mean?" he asked in return.

Olivia couldn't help but smile. "Is that what we're doing now?"

Fitz shrugged. "It's fair. You tell me something, I tell you something."

...

For the next three hours, they lay on the mat next to each other and talked about everything and nothing.

Olivia told him about her rebellious days and growing up with a rich, absentee father. She had been a daddy's little girl when she was a tiny little rugrat. She could vividly remember their Saturday night dinner dates, him teaching how to ride a bike and soothing her back to sleep when she had a nightmare. She could also remember the countless nights she spent doing homework under their piano while he played it and her mother swaying to the keys while she made their dinner. When she was a little girl, she had been the sun and the moon to her father. He was her hero and she could do no wrong in his eyes because she was a bundle of innocence and perfection. His whole world revolved around her because she was his little girl. His only child and he adored her and spoiled her and he would move the world and bring it at her feet if that's what she wanted. Then she grew up, and suddenly that father-daughter bond that was once so strong was no more. It wasn't until she was in her last year of high school and leaving for college did they make an attempt at redeeming their relationship again. For the sake of her mother at least because Olivia couldn't take it when that woman cries. She draws the line at hurting the people she loves.

"The tattoo on my back is me after my grandmother passed away." She explained.

Shortly after rekindling her fragile relationship with her father, she fell into a period of deep depression when her Nana Gigi _(short for Giselle)_ passed away. The loss of her grandmother had taken a toll on her. She didn't know how to deal with it so for a long time, she had somehow managed to block the trauma from her memory and never really grieved. Though when she remembered, she had a breakdown that lasted for months. That had to have been her rock bottom in life because she was really close with her grandmother and she loved that woman to pieces.

Fitz took his time to examine every curve, every symmetrical line, every dot- loving the image that it formed. The wings were a light shade of purple-faded blue in clouds as a background. He loved it. A phoenix rising from the ashes, seething with fire. It was the work of a true artist on her back.

On her left shoulder blade, she also had a bow tattoo with the name Giselle Eloise Lewis engraved inside. That one was beautiful too.

"It's a phoenix." Fitz stated.

"Yeah," Olivia chuckled. "I had _a lot_ of shit to get together."

When Fitz started telling her his story, Olivia knew then just how very different they were from each other. Olivia realized that she had it a thousand times better than Fitz when he told her about his rough upbringing with the passing of his parent in a fatal car accident at the young age of ten. He told her about about his passing in the foster system because he had no other living relatives to speak of when his life had been turned upside down. He told about the struggles, the sleepless nights, the hunger he suffered when he didn't know where his next meal was coming from and the loneliness before he found this kind man with a heart-of-gold that took him in and gave him a home when he was ready to give up.

"His wife had just passed away when he took me in and to this day, I don't know what he saw in me that made him look twice."

Olivia was on the verge of tears. His story was sad but there was this beauty to it also. He wasn't the only person in the world with that kind of upbringing, but he's definitely one of a kind because some people don't even make it after the system dumps them when they're of legal age. And if by chance they find a foster home, it's not always rainbows after that. People are horrible. They treated those kids like nobodies and inflict all kinds of abuse on them because at the end of the day, they were just a government paycheck. Almost half of the people who's been into the foster care system end up one of two ways. And ninety-six percent of the time, it's in some trap house overdosed with a needle sticking in their veins.

It wasn't fair. None of it was.

So she cried. She cried because he was an underdog and he survived. He was somebody. And he was her friend.

"Maybe he needed saving too after losing his wife."

Fitz had never thought of it that way. Over time, he had come to lose the idea that he was a charity case because he sure as shit did needed saving back then. But if there's one thing he was certain of, it's that Voight Catalano was one of a kind.

"He was a no-nonsense kind of man but he had the most admirable qualities. He was fair and loyal and he taught me everything I know. I could always come to him." Fitz smiled.

Some days he missed that old man so much, the pain crumbled him.

"He had this saying of his. It was something like: _'One language sets you in a corridor for life. Two languages open every door along the way.'_ He made me learn Italian, taught me how to fix cars, taught me how to fight. Taught me everything. That man was one in a million and there's not a day that goes by when I don't feel grateful towards him or miss him."

Olivia raised her half empty bottle of wine and click it with Fitz's in a toast. "To Voight."

"To Voight."

* * *

Sitting in her apartment three days later, Olivia couldn't help but feel resolute. Her break up with Edison couldn't have happened at a better time.

She has three months to heal and get over him before she was back to teaching a bunch of excited kindergarten kids.

She was also free to just be for a while. She hadn't realized how much she actually missed riding the single train until now. Being in a relationship came with all sorts of challenges and complications. Relationships were hard work and it was a lot of stress. Being in a fully committed relationship meant having to constantly worry about this, care about that and for once, she just wanted to care and worry about herself. Olivia.

She tried loving other people and that didn't work out well for her so this time she was gonna try something new. She was gonna love herself.

And she also missed casual hook ups. She missed the fun of being single and independent. She missed being spontaneous and alive. She missed having her brain screwed against a wall and moaning like a whore in church because it was just that good. So maybe she should actually feel grateful that Edison cheated because seriously, she was really starting to get sick and tired of the missionary position.

So maybe this breakup in its own twisted ironic way was the best things that's ever happened to her in a really long time.

* * *

 ** _Sometime later..._**

Today was one of the day in the year that she always looked forward to no matter what was going on in her life. Every year, on this exact day, she volunteers for a charity that helps gives women shelter, gets them off the streets and out of abusive relationships.

One in three women will be faced with domestic abuse in their lifetime. Those were the statistics. It was so sad to hear that men could make empowering women feel so vulnerable and voiceless in an abusive relationship. Financial abuse is the hidden weapon. In abusive relationship, it's not necessarily seen the way you would see a black eye. But it is the number one reason women stay in abusive relationships. And even when they leave, it's the number one reason why they go back, because they are not financially stable enough to make it on their own. So they cling onto that financial source because they need it even though it could potentially cost them their lives.

So every year, on this exact day, she always volunteers and brings everything she has to this event to raise an enormous amount of money for that charity. She would do whatever it takes if it means getting to save one person's life.

"Wow, it's packed this year!" Abby said as they arrived at the fundraiser.

Olivia nodded. It's exactly how she likes it. "We have a lot of work to do." She smiled.

Abby has been Olivia's best friend since third grade when they both got detention for bringing vengeance down on their class bully by egging the fuck out of him and pulling his pants down in front of the whole entire school one day at recess. They'd been inseparable ever since and Olivia couldn't have asked for a better partner in crime.

So today, it's no surprise that she was here with her, being her cheerleader and supporting this charity event.

Abby is also an artist. The best goddamn artist Olivia's ever known. Her art is neither common nor mediocre. The things she could do with a brush or a tattoo gun is absolutely mesmerizing to watch. So her part in this charity event was body painting. And later, she was putting on a special show by herself. It was gonna be her blindfolded against a canvas board with an audience watching in Harlem, New York City. Then that painting was going to be auctioned as a way of raising more money for the charity. Just thinking about it was already sending a rush of adrenaline down her bloodstream.

It was barely noon and the place was packing. New Yorkers were already setting up their tents on the grass field, some were sunbathing and others were at the food station in line, waiting at their chosen vendor's truck for delicious New York street food.

But best of all, they were raising awareness to domestic abuse by waving in the air some of the best posters Olivia's ever seen.

 _I survived domestic violence. I spoke up. I chose to live._

 _..._

 _This charity saved my life. I had no place to go, no money. I was all alone. Three years later, I now have a job, a safe place to call home, people to rely on. I don't have nightmares anymore. I'm still healing. Every day, I'm a survivor._

 _..._

 _"What do you want? An apology? Your ass should be grateful that I love you so much"- He'd say after every beat down. But love shouldn't cause internal bleeding and broken bones. STOP DOMESTIC VIOLENCE!_

 _..._

 _-Broken_

 _-Threatened_

 _-Scared_

 _-Intimidated_

 _-Controlled_

 _-Manipulated_

 _-Humiliated_

 _-Battered_

 _You didn't win._

 _You're still weak._

 _I survived._

 _..._

This was just to name a few.

Olivia was so overwhelmed, she could cry. The whole field was a sea of people in purple t-shirts and she couldn't believe that she has the pleasure of hosting the event this year. This meant everything to her and she was going to raise as much money as possible while making sure things run smoothly and keeping the people entertained.

By two o'clock, the booths were being set up. One booth was for souvenirs. They sold t-shirts and wristbands, bags, bandanas, etc... It was kind of like a mini gift shop. Another booth carried a line so long, it was fascinating. That booth had this really talented kid running it. Her and her partner made craft bracelets before your very own eyes. They were pretty damn amazing. Then, there was the booth where the donations were being made. That line was even longer. It was great. They literally took anything and everything. Cash, credit card, check, whatever you had was admissible. There was the magic booth. Then there was Abby's booth where the line was absolutely bonkers.

Every line seemed bigger than the last. It was great.

This year, they hired a genius DJ and she was spinning some of the best stuff ever and people were having a great time. There was something so beautiful about that unity that brought tear to Olivia's eyes. Black, White, Asian, Hispanic, all sorts of people from different races were there and they were happy, dancing, eating. They were there for their community and raising money for a great cause. They were making a difference. Who they chose to be when they left this event was up to them but for the moment, racism wasn't a factor, police brutality wasn't happening- no sir. Olivia made sure their asses kept their weapons and handcuffs to themselves and not to be used unless something really bad was going down. And if any of them on duty had anything to say about it, they could talk to her Godfather who also happens to be the Commissioner of the NYPD force. Those people were just people and she wouldn't allow them to be mistreated like savage animals. Not on her watch. They were people who when they come together could do great things if they put society's expectations and their own differences aside.

Seeing that first hand and being able to be in the moment, Olivia's faith in humanity was slowly restoring. Slowly but surely.

Four o'clock is when it really started.

Kids, parents, teenagers, elderlies, all kinds of people walked around with Abby's art on their bodies and faces. They'd already raised about five hundred thousand dollars and it was only getting started. And more people were showing up.

"Liv, my fucking fingers are gonna fall off." Abby said when Olivia came to check up on her with a snack from the mexican food truck.

Her job wasn't easy but she had a line ready and this was for something great. So she was persevering. But her by herself, she couldn't do it with an army of people waiting to be painted.

Olivia kissed the redhead's cheek and smiled at her. She looked cute in AEO high-rise denim shorts and a purple tie dye crop top. Her red hair was in a pixie cut with a purple bandanna wrapped around her head. Her fingers were ten different shades of colors and she just looked adorable!

"You're doing great babe." Olivia pulled up a chair next to Abby, picked up a paintbrush and started a line of her own.

They always did make a great team.

...

It all went well.

After Abby's art exhibition, a very talented singer ended the night covering Rita Ora's _Grateful._ She brought the whole house down. People stood up on their feet, singing along the lyrics with her, waving their hands about. Some felt the words so deeply into their souls they shed tears. It was overall a successful event and by the end of the day, they raised a shit ton of money and Olivia was on a high she could barely put a name to. She took pictures covered in paint for the cover of a local newspaper called City Arts with the mayor, a few policemen that were on duty, Abby and the sponsors.

"We did it, Abbs!" Olivia said excitedly.

"Yeah. And my fingers are crying uncle." Try as she might, the redhead couldn't help but smile when her friend pulled her in a hug so tight, she could barely breathe. "Okay. You can let me go now."

"No." Olivia shook her head.

"Olivia..."

"No."

"Liv... seriously, I can't breathe."

Finally, Olivia released her tiny frame with a smothering kiss to her cheek. "Thanks for doing this with me."

"Then buy me dinner because I'm fucking starving!" Abby said.

A smile graced Olivia's lips as she shook her head. "I'll do you one better. How about dinner and a drink?"

"As long as you're paying." Abby shrugged.

Rolling her eyes, Olivia chuckled. "Of course. Let me just grab my bag."

She went back into Abby's booth and retrieved her bag and her jacket. As she's exiting the booth, instincts told her to look for her phone. Reaching for the electronic device into the small pocket in the front of her coral Hermes Kelly handbag, she checked for her notifications. Deciding they weren't important enough, she was about to put the phone back in the bag when her finger accidentally opened the phone log app and his name popped on the very top in her contact below Abby's name.

 _Ace._

It's been a few weeks since they've talked or seen each other. After the last time they were at his gym, they hung out exactly twice and one of those times Olivia took him to dinner, that time paying out of her own pocket as a thank you to him even though he said it wasn't necessary.

Before she even had time to think about it, she found herself tapping on the calling icon next to his name. The phone rang once in her ears before his baritone filled her ears.

"If I was the narcissistic type, I'd say you've been sitting by that phone waiting for my call." She teased.

He chuckled.

"Maybe I was waiting for your call." He replied.

Olivia smiled.

A comfortable silence filled the line between them and she just listened to him breathe. She could hear some background noise and she was curious as to where he was at the moment.

She was about to ask but he beat her to the punch by breaking their silence first.

"You're calling me." He said, almost as if he couldn't believe it.

"I'm calling you." Olivia affirmed.

The why was thick in the air. And Olivia realized that she's never really called him just because...

"I had a great day today. I did an amazing thing today and you're the first person I wanted to talk to."

He was about to say something when suddenly his hand muffled over the mouthpiece on the phone and even then, she could hear someone in the back ground having an interesting conversation with him.

 _"Seriously, Grant? All the pussy in the world is asking for you and you're out here making romantic phone calls to who knows fuck when you could balls deep inside multiple mouths?"_

 _"Fuck off, Jake! And don't you ever talk about my balls. No matter what context."_

Then he was back on the phone with her and Olivia was dying of laughter.

"I'm sorry about that."

"It's okay." Olivia said. "Where are you?"

"I'm at Mike's- the bar we met. I'm with a couple of guys from work, _unwinding_." He replied.

"You've got _grade A_ pussy waiting, Grant. What are you doing still talking to me?" She teased.

He went dead silent and Olivia would have given anything in the world to have seen his face just about now.

"You're beets red right now, aren't you?" She continued to further tease.

"No!" He answered.

Olivia chuckled. "Well I'm gonna let you go have fun with your boys."

 _"Livvie-"_ She was ready to hang up but that nickname stopped her. He's never called her anything other than Olivia or fireball.

Livvie was new. Nobody's ever called her that before. Everyone else calls her Liv with the exception of her mother that calls her Livia.

"Olivia, are you still there?"

"Yeah." She replied.

"Okay. Don't go."

"Why not?" She asked.

"Because..."

"Because what?"

 _Because I miss you and I don't want you to go._ Ultimately, that's the answer that came to his lips but he held back from saying it because he didn't want to scare her off.

"Come to Mike's." He said. "I'll buy you a drink and you can tell me all about your great day."

Olivia was hesitant. He was out with his friends and she didn't want to be the chick that came and crap all over his parade. There were going to be girls all over him and it sounded like he had a reputation to uphold so she didn't want to keep him from scoring tonight if that was the plan.

"I don't think that's such a great idea." She replied.

"Why?" She could hear the smile in his voice then. "I think it's the best idea I've had all week."

"You're out with your boys and I have a hot redhead to go feed."

She knew he wouldn't coerce her into doing anything she wasn't up to doing because that's the kind of honorable man he was. She knew that about him since the first night she met him because when he took her home with him that night, he could've preyed on her vulnerability and she would've caved because let's be honest, he's deliciously hot, she was drunk and she wanted to not feel the pain of the betrayal that Edison had caused her. If he'd approached her at a different angle than he had and pushed hard enough, she would've caved because in some fucked up part of her mind, she would've been getting back at Edison by getting with some stranger immediately after breaking up with him.

Except, he didn't play that card. He was a perfect gentleman. He opened his doors to her, fed her, and showed her the kindness and comfort that she was in desperate need of that night. So she knew him. He was in every sense of the word one of the good guys out there.

"Well, I'm gonna be at Mike's until happy hour and those drinks are gonna be there waiting for you just in case you change your mind. I really would like to see you. It's been too long."

Olivia glanced outside to find Abby leaning against her car waiting for her impatiently. "I gotta go." She told him.

"Okay."

When the line went dead, Olivia wished to everything holy and pure that he'd persuaded her more.

...

She was sitting at the little Indian restaurant with Abby but she wasn't really there. Her thoughts were with him.

Olivia couldn't help but realize how at joy and light she feels around him. He made her smile and she could just talk to him and feel like she's known him for a lifetime instead of weeks. Barely.

She didn't know what it was. Or what it meant. But she loved the way she feels when she's around him. It didn't even have anything to do with some dumb sexual attraction. And God knows that man is hot. He's been blessed. But it was that feeling of belonging. She's never had that with anyone. But with him, she did. And she craved that more than anything at the moment.

"Oh, God! This is so fucking good." Abby moaned around a fork of tandoori chicken. "I'm gonna blow up, most likely have a heart attack thirty years from now but it will be so worth it. Why is this so good, Liv?"

Olivia chuckled. At this rate, she swore she was going to go broke. This bitch was a foodie and an expensive one at that. And she wouldn't eat anything but Indian food tonight. Said she had been craving it for some time and now, she was enjoying and devouring every bite of her dinner.

For the second time in ten minutes, Olivia forced herself to take a bite of her dinner. She didn't have much of an appetite and she's sure that Abby has already picked up on it. She took a sip of her red wine and smiled. "It's good." She agreed.

"What's wrong?" Abby asked, wiping her mouth with a napkin.

Olivia shrugged. She started stirring her glass of wine on the table, avoiding eye contact with the redhead. "Nothing. Today was a great day. It was a lot but great nonetheless and I guess I'm just a little tired." She replied.

When she looked up, she found Abby leaning back in her chair, reading her through fucking microscope eyes. Olivia hated when she did that. She felt so vulnerable when she did that.

"Guess who showed up at the parlor three days ago?" Abby asked.

Olivia shook her head. She wasn't in the mood to play the guessing game. "I don't know. But I have a feeling you're gonna tell me." She replied.

"Why didn't you say anything, Liv?" Abby asked.

She had that hurt puppy fucking look. Goddamn it!

Olivia tear her eyes away from hers and shrugged again. "I don't know." She answered. "It's humiliating enough what he did. I guess I just didn't feel like broadcasting it."

"Broadcasting?!" Abby cried incredulously. "Since when Liv? Since fucking when has our sharing become a form of broadcasting?" Now she was beyond hurt. She was offended. "Twisted other half, remember? We share the hook ups, the breakups, the heartbreaks because I was under the impression that's what fucking friendship is about. At least that's what I thought we had. Maybe I was wrong."

"What do you want me to say?!" Olivia exclaimed. "He cheated. I got hurt _again_. It's over. Another sad story to fucking mope about until the next. Not a big deal."

Silence.

Then, "What did he want?"

Olivia couldn't help her curiosity and she felt kind of guilty for caring. The last thing she should give a shit about is what Edison wants.

Abby raised her glass of wine to her lips and took a swallow of the red liquid. "He stopped by at the parlor. Said you moved out and changed your number and he's worried about you."

Olivia scoffed. The fucking nerves of that mother fucking asshole.

 _He's worried about her._

God! If she ever seems him in the streets... urgh!

She's gonna start praying for graciousness and the will to forgive him because she's not sure she'll be able to control the urge to slam her fist in his face when and if she ever sees him again.

"Well fuck him." Olivia said. "What else did the pendejo say?"

"He wanted to know where you lived now. Which I didn't answer because I didn't even fucking know you moved until he mentioned it." Abby replied, still irritated.

"I'm sorry I didn't say anything." Olivia said, genuinely being honest. "I guess I wanted to just _be_ for once by myself you know? I didn't mean to make it seem like I don't trust you or anything because I do. You're my best friend and I'm sorry."

Abby feeling pleased with the apology offered a small smile as her personal olive branch. "So how are you?" She asked. "Really."

Olivia shrugged. "I think I'm fine now." She said. "I'm getting over it but what he did is making me evaluate a lot of things about myself. I'm not gonna rush into anything new too soon. I think I need this break for myself."

"You know what that means right?" Abby said.

"What?" Olivia asked.

"Edison's officially on my shit list."

Then, Olivia couldn't help the smile that stretched across her lips. "Oh I know."

...

Across town at Mike's, Fitz was officially retreating into his own bubble. He was the pretty boy with the boner killer. At least that's what his colleagues were now calling him. After speaking with Olivia on the phone, he didn't feel much up to talking to some blonde brat with fake tits. And taking anyone home was the last thing on his mind also.

He just wanted to see her.

And if by any chance she decided to show up at Mike's, he didn't want her to find him with some dumb dumber bimbo all over him. He had no explanation to justify that train of thought. But he just wanted to see her. That's all.

Jake disappeared with a little redhead in the bathroom about half hour ago and he still has yet to return. And Stephen was at the pool table talking the ears off a brunette with long legs, fake tits and eccentric blue eyes.

He didn't get it. Hookups were fun and all but he didn't ever want to find himself fucking somebody who could barely hold a conversation past _"Fuck my mouth."_ Now don't get him wrong, he loves dirty talking and getting blown within an inch of his life by a hot piece of ass just as much as the next guy but what the fuck was he supposed to do with someone who couldn't talk about anything intellectual once all the fun was done and over with. What is the point?

So he did what he usually does when he comes to Mike's. He sat at their table and took in the scenery; watching people and listening to the goodies playing in the overhead speakers. Something about that was more exhilarating and peaceful that any sexual act at the moment.

Checking his watch, he saw that it was only about eleven o'clock. There's still more time. And he just hoped she'd show up.

...

Olivia had just walked Abby out and put her in a taxi in front of her apartment building. After dinner at the little Indian restaurant, she brought Abby over, deciding that it was only fair that she saw her new condo now that she knew about her whole ordeal with Edison.

They baked a huge bowl of delicious M&M chocolate chip cookies while jamming hardcore to her Ipad's playlist. It was exactly what Olivia needed to fully get it all out and she didn't even realize it. Dancing in her kitchen and having a food fight with her best friend proved to be more therapeutic than her sad binge-eating tactics.

Exhausted after the long day, they called it a night around eleven o'clock, making plans to at least grab lunch next week when they had an easy day.

Now fresh out of the shower and in her pajamas, Olivia lie in bed tossing and turning. She was exhausted. She was beyond exhausted but for the life of her, she couldn't shut her brain down long enough to close her eyes and fall asleep. And any time she did manage to close her eyes, his blue eyes flashed behind her lids and she could hear his little nickname for her on his lips as he laughed.

 _Fuck!_

What was this man doing to her?

...

It was hitting close to that time and Fitz was ready to call it a night. He'd come to the conclusion that she wasn't showing up and though disappointed, he told himself he was fine with it, simply because he had to be. All his friends were gone, each left with a girl wrapped around their dick and shit eating grins on their faces.

Fitz shook his head. That little blonde that was all over him had no problem rebounding him the second he made it clear he wasn't interested. And really, he didn't care. It amused him.

Throwing back the last of his scotch, he held his hand up to get Mike's attention.

"Leaving so soon?" Mike asked.

Fitz nodded. "Yeah. I think I've had about enough. I got an early day tomorrow." He took out his wallet from his pocket and paid for his half of the tab.

"Drive safe, bro." Mike advised.

Fitz gave him a wave in acknowledgement as he made his way out the door with keys in hand.

When he reached his parked truck outside in front of the bar, he came to a halt in his step, startled in the best way possible when he saw her tiny frame leaning against his truck.

She was picture perfect in a pair of cut off jean shorts, black crop top, long comfortable cardigan and silver glittered Keds. Her dark hair was in a sophisticated French fishtail braid wrapped in a messy bun on top of her head. She looked absolutely breathtaking.

His heart couldn't handle it.

"Hi." She greeted.

Too tongue tied and at joy to respond, he simply smiled back at her with a stupid idiotic grin on his lips.

"Hungry?" She asked.

"Starving." He replied.

"Tonight's your lucky night, Ace." She told him with a smile.

 _God she was beautiful!_

"How so?" He asked.

"I happen to know of this diner that makes the best waffles in all of New York City and tonight I'm feeling very generous." She replied. "If you're interested, that is." She quickly added shyly.

Fitz chuckled. "I do love waffles."

"Wanna get out of here, then?"

He wanted to go anywhere she was going. But he didn't dare say that.

"Yes."

When she held her hand up to him, he was very confused until he figured out that she wanted to drive his truck. Normally, he'd be wary about it because that truck was his proud child. That truck was the last memory of Voight he had before he passed away. They build that truck up from debris in a junkyard to the beauty that it was right now. It was sentimental. There was no way that he'd let just anyone drive it.

But when she asked for the key, he didn't even have to think twice about it before he was tossing them at her. He tried to trump it on having too much to drink and it was only logical and realistic and responsible of him to have her drive. Yeah, there was that too. But what really drove him was the fact that he trusted her. He trusted her and that was a whole lot in his book because trust doesn't come easily for him. Yet with her, it wasn't that hard.

Just as they climbed in the truck, he remembered that his truck was not some typical automatic truck and not just anyone could drive it.

"Can you drive a stick?"

She laughed at him as she put the keys in the engine. "Buckle up, Ace."


	3. Chapter 3

She handled his car.

Literally fucking drove it like it was her purpose in life and she looked bad as fuck doing it. There was nothing in the entire world sexier to Fitzgerald Grant than a woman who could drive a stick shift and to say that he was totally turned on and completely mind blown would be an understatement.

They pulled up at the little diner no less than ten minutes later and she parallel parked the truck at a meter, putting a few quarters for their estimated time. Then arm and arm, they walked from the car to the small little diner. On their way in, they bumped into a fat, bald man with a stomach the size of a watermelon.

"Damn she's a babe!" He whistled.

That stopped Fitz dead in his track. Turning to face the man, he looked enraged with disgust. Eyebrows raised he asked, "What did you say?"

Sensing the tension, Olivia tugged at his arm. "Let it go." She whispered.

No. _He couldn't let it go_. What the hell was it with men these days and their mouth? When did it stop being cool to be chivalrous towards women and then blame it on society because everything wrong with the world today was put on the fact that society was fucked up. But what about pigs like this guy who could whistle at a woman of color like she was an object or an animal and completely disregarding the fact that she clearly had a man on her arms?

What pissed Fitz off even more was the fact that this guy was old enough to be Olivia's father so his blatant disrespect towards her made his skin crawl. If whatever came out of this guy's mouth next wasn't an apology, he didn't give a fuck, he would bash the fat bastard's face in.

The bald man sensing how his comment might've been wrong and disrespectful surrendered both his hands in the air. "I meant no disrespect to your lady, son." He said. "If it's any consolation, I was talking about your truck. It is yours right?"

Feeling some of the tension rolling off him, Fitz blinked. "Oh."

"I own a dealership up north and I see all sorts of amazing wheels but I've never seen anything like your truck." The bald man continued explaining. "It's vintage with a touch of modern. And I love the silver tires on e'm. It's a real beauty."

"It is." Fitz agreed. "Thanks."

"Would you consider selling it?" The man asked.

Fitz frowned. Over his dead body. "No. It has sentimental values." He replied.

"Oh well. It's a great car." The man said, taking one last look at the truck before smiling at Fitz. "Anyhow, have a great rest of your night. Sorry again for the misunderstanding."

Fitz nodded back at him in acknowledgement. "Goodnight."

They watched the man leave together before Olivia stepped in front of Fitz. "With you being all alpha male on me right now, I'm starting to think you need a new name."

...

Now they sat in the diner in a small booth across each other with menus in front of them.

"You have to try their bacon cheese fries." Olivia said excitedly. "It's literally the best thing in the world."

Fitz looked up from his menu with a smirk. "What else do you recommend?" He asked.

Olivia found it hard to hold his gaze for more than a minute. It's just something about those blue eyes. They speak to her a certain way and she was afraid that if she looked too long, she might find herself lost in them. Looking back down at the menu in front of her, she scanned it with concentration before replying; "I suppose their BLT guacamole is great too. But their waffles and fries... to die for. I promise."

"Sold." Fitz winked at her. "And bacon. I want lots of bacon."

Raising her hand up to signal to the waitress that they were ready to order, Olivia smiled at him cheerfully. "Please, by all means go crazy. I can't go anymore broke than I already am." She teased.

Twenty minutes later, their plates lay in front of them on the table and Fitz swore he's never seen so much food in his entire life.

"That's _a lot_ of bacon." He said.

Olivia looked up at him. "We can always find a homeless man to give the leftovers to." She said suggestively.

"No. I think I'm gonna eat it all." Fitz said, eyeing the mountain of deliciously smoked, crispy turkey bacon.

His eyes then traveled to the Belgian waffles in the white plate next to the bacon. God it looked mouthwatering. He was almost afraid to touch it. Stacked on top of each other with whip cream and fresh organic strawberries with chocolate syrup dripping all over it, the waffles begged to be devoured.

Olivia was the one to reach for a piece of bacon first, moaning as the scrumptious taste melted on her tongue, awakening her taste-buds all at once. Picking up another piece, she rose from her seat across from him and held the piece of meat in front of his mouth. "Open."

On the first bite Fitz threw his head back and roared with delight and closed his eyes as he chewed slowly, savoring every taste.

Olivia couldn't help the dumb smile on her face. "Good?" She asked knowingly.

"The best." Fitz replied.

She grabbed a strawberry from their plate of waffles and fed him some more, enjoying every glorious sound he made one bite after another.

"I wanna know all about the great day you had today." Fitz said.

Judging by the look of surprise of her face, Fitz smirked at her. "What? You thought I would forget?"

More like she didn't think he cared enough.

"I wanna know everything."

So she told him. She told him about the charity and its cause. She told him about the unity that she saw amongst the people for their community and how great they were. She told him about the body painting, the food trucks and how much money they raised.

"You should've called me way earlier." Fitz said. "I would've loved to be there and be a part of something so amazing."

"Maybe you can come next year."

Fitz smiled. It wasn't lost on him that she thought there would be a next year for them. Maybe she liked him after all.

...

"So, tell me what you were like when you were younger." Olivia asked.

Plates empty, they were too full to get up from their seats. At this time of the night, they were one of three customers in the place so they ordered coffee and decided to just relax at the little diner.

"What do you wanna know?" Fitz asked.

"I wanna know about your girlfriends. I bet girls were in line waiting at your feet at school." Olivia said.

Fitz smirked, shaking his head. "That couldn't be farther from the truth."

Olivia's jaw dropped. "I don't believe you." She shook her head. "You mean to tell me that at the age of sixteen, you Fitzgerald Grant didn't have girls swooning at your good looks?"

"Yes." Fitz replied. "I didn't go to school much."

"What do you mean?" Olivia asked.

He shrugged. "I mean, I didn't go." He clarified. "I hadn't met Voight yet when I was a freshman in high school. I went to school enough days to pass but the rest of the time, I hustled hard to be able to provide for myself."

Olivia could feel her heart breaking in her chest for him all over again. "I wish I could've known you then." She said tearfully. "Tell me what you looked like."

The sincerity in her voice was Fitz's undoing. She really wanted to know him when he was nothing at all. She wanted to know him when he was just getting by, hoping to make it the next morning. So he did. He wasn't ashamed of his past. He did what he could to survive and it shaped him to be the person that he was right now. "I didn't have much of anything." He said chuckling bitter-sweetly. "Hell I had nothing so it was pretty easy to just be invisible because I wasn't the popular guy at school that everyone noticed. I was the tall scrawny kid who wore the same grey hoodie everyday to cover his mass of long blond hair. My hair was so long. I could put it in a ponytail and it would still reach past my shoulders. My school had an attic that they never really used because they couldn't fund to renovate it so it was my home for a whole year and I ate the cafeteria food for a while. When I got tired of the food, I figured out a way to work the vending machine without putting money in it. And a little rat that I named Bobby was kinda my best friend for six whole months until he fucked around and got trapped stealing cheese."

At this point, Olivia wasn't sure if she could keep the tears at bay anymore. It sounded like he was telling her about an entirely different person. Someone that could never have been him because of who he was now. "When did Voight come into your life?" She asked.

Olivia wanted to know when the world stopped punishing him. She wanted to know when all the pain stopped for him because all that other bad stuff was breaking her soul too much.

"The summer before I started junior year in high school." Fitz replied. "I grew ten inches. I was a freaking amazon. Then I was casually sleeping with this girl, her name was Autumn. She had a pregnancy scare and I was shitless petrified."

Fitz could recall that moment like it was yesterday. When Autumn came to the hospital where he then worked as a janitor - when she came to tell him that she was late and that she thinks she might be pregnant, his whole entire world span on its axis. He didn't know what to do. It felt like he was never gonna get a break with the bad luck. He's heard from people that a baby is supposed to bring joy, but he wasn't happy about it. He couldn't very well suggest that Autumn gets an abortion because even if he did, where the hell was he gonna get the money to pay for the procedure when she wasn't even covered in insurance? They were two orphans living off hope for a better tomorrow. They couldn't bring a freaking child into the world with that. Hope couldn't feed a child. It certainly couldn't raise one either.

"I wasn't getting paid until the end of that month so I had to work something fast." Fitz continued. "And the answer to my prayers was this guy who came in every day to visit his grandmother at the hospital. He was rich. He had that look about him. Expensive suit, nice shoes, sharp watch- rich people shit. And a pompous asshole too."

"Oh God, what did you do?" Olivia asked, sitting on the edge of her seat.

Fitz smiled at her, taking a sip of his double espresso. "He always carried his check book with him and I found out that he always signed them." He said. "I mean what idiot signs all his checks? That's literally asking to be robbed."

"Fitzgerald Grant! Tell me you didn't." Olivia demanded with raised eyebrows.

Fitz nodded. "I did." He replied. "I bumped into him real easy. I took his watch and slipped that check book out of his pocket. I figured he had enough money in his bank account to last him a lifetime so he wouldn't miss a couple thousand dollars and a watch if they went missing."

Olivia shook her head at him unbelievably. "How much did you take?" She asked.

"His handwriting was easy enough to manipulate. I wrote myself a check for ten thousand dollars." Fitz said.

Mesmerized, Olivia couldn't help but stare at him with a look of complete amazement. "What happened after that."

"After that, I left for work to go cash in the check and sell the watch. Then much later at a pharmacy I realized that I had been followed all day long by Voight. Every time I thought I lost him, he'd find me again. I thought he was a cop of some kind so I finally stopped running and decided he could lock me up. Prison had to be better because at least there, you get a meal three times a day, and a bed to sleep. So if I was a criminal, be it. I lured him to an empty parking lot building and waited for him to find me."

"What did he do?" Olivia asked.

"Nothing." Fitz replied. "He found me sitting on top of the roof. He joined me and he offered me a drink and just looked at the world with me. When the bottle of whiskey was done, he turned around and looked at me real close. He smiled at me before patting me on the shoulder. Then he said the most ridiculous thing to me."

"What?" Olivia asked.

Fitz smiled. Clearing his voice, he mimicked his protege's voice. _"You should've taken at least a million."_ And the rest was history. "We laughed it off, he gave me his card and said if I wanted something better, all I needed to do was give him a call."

"And..."

Fitz shrugged. "My pocket was heavy. Turns out, the watch was a big deal. It was a Patek Philippe watch and the owner jumped at it the second I put it on the counter for him to see. I could tell he wanted it and I was one hell of a con artist. I walked out of the pawn shop with two hundred thousand dollars in my pocket." Olivia gaped at him, wide eyed and he smirked at her, continuing; "The plan was to get out of the shelter and find a place to stay. Save up on what I had and get a second job at this new cafe that was just opening. I had it all figured out. It felt like I had just hit the lottery. But I didn't feel as happy as I should've felt. So with the card still in my hand, I wept like a child that night because I was just so tired of life. I wanted to feel like a kid for just one night and after so many years, there was this stranger offering me a way out without naming a price. I knew it must've been a trick cause everyone on this planet has a price, you know? And yet, sitting on top of that roof all alone, contemplating jumping fifty flights down knowing that no one would care because I was the invisible kid that no one paid no mind to- I decided this was no way to live. I deserved to be known... I deserved to be missed so if he had a price, he could name it. Maybe I couldn't pay it in full, but I'd work hard enough to fully pay it in time. Voight left, and an hour later, I gave him a call because I was tired. I wanted to be a kid."

It took everything Olivia had not to sprint out of her side of the booth to come squeeze him to death. Her heart broke in her chest for him over and over again. For the kid in him that never really got to enjoy a great childhood with parents around, themed birthday parties, baseball games and sleepovers. For the teenage soul in him that felt neglected and invisible in a world filled with seven billion people. Seven billion souls and yet he felt all alone. Like it was just him against the world. Her heart broke for him because where was she at that time? Why couldn't they have met then?

Olivia refused to look him in the eye as her tears fell. She was just so sad but so happy for the person he was now. In this moment and time, sitting across from him, she loved the person he'd become. She didn't want him to mistake the sadness in her eyes as pity because that was far from what she felt for him.

So she asked something else that wouldn't rip through her guts since her heart was already into a million pieces of dust.

"And Autumn. What happened with her?"

"She wasn't pregnant. And I broke things off with her that night because it was too much of a close call and I never wanted to feel as scared in my life ever again." Fitz told her. "I could deal with being alone, a con-artist, even the possibility of getting locked up. But bringing a baby into the world where I had nothing... no means to support it and give it all it needs, I couldn't do that."

Olivia looked at him and sighed dreamily. "Ace...?"

"Yes?" Fitz replied.

"If I had known you then, _I_ would've noticed you." Olivia told him. Not to stroke his ego and make him feel better but because that was the truth and she wanted him to know it. "I probably would've been that one girl with a huge crush on you. I would've totally been in love with you." She said.

"You think so?" Fitz asked smirking.

Olivia nodded. "Oh I know so." She took a sip of her warm coffee. Smiling back at him, she added; "I have a thing for underdogs."

"Even the thieving type?" Fitz teased.

"Especially the thieving type." She replied.

Then they both laughed. The sound of pure joy escaping their lips.

"I told you fireball. You're a bad boy lover."

Olivia rolled her eyes, feigning irritation. "So what if I am? _Whatever._ "

"Come on, let's get out of here." Fitz suggested.

"Let's." Olivia agreed.

Just as they stood up to go pay for their tab, The Goo-Goo Dolls came blasting loudly in the overhead speakers and Olivia couldn't help the girly smile that graced her lips.

"Oh seriously?" Fitz asked. "The Goo-Goo Dolls? You like them?"

"Don't you?" Olivia asked. "Come on, dance with me. Make a girl feel special."

"Since you asked so nicely..." Grabbing her hand, he twirled her around in the middle of the little diner before wrapping his arms around her waist. With her head rested on his chest and her arms wrapped around his neck, they swayed to the music.

Fitz could hear her humming to the lyrics softly and all he could think about was how much he liked this girl.

 _And I'd give up forever to touch you/ 'Cause I know that you feel me somehow/You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be/And I don't want to go home right now/And all I can taste is this moment/And all I can breathe is your life/And sooner or later it's over/I just don't wanna miss you tonight._

...

"Teach me Italian." Olivia said.

Walking down the quiet empty streets arm in arm in complete serenity, Olivia found herself wanting to know everything he knew.

"Okay." Fitz smiled. "What do you wanna learn."

"How would I say: my favorite color is yellow?" She asked.

"Is it yellow?"

Olivia shook her head. "No."

"What's your favorite color then?"

"I'm not sure there's a name for it." Olivia answered. "You know the really pretty pink-purple-ish color that clears up the sky before the sun rises? That's my favorite color in the entire world."

Fitz grinned. "Il mio colore preferito è giallo."

"What about: You have beautiful eyes?"

"Hm, I'm starting to think you're flirting with me Ms. Olivia."

"Maybe I am." Olivia teased. "You have beautiful eyes. Come dire?"

"Ah, look at you learning already." Fitz said proudly. "Hai degli occhi belli."

They walked another block in silence and she didn't ask him anything else. Then while they were waiting at the stop light to cross the street, she suddenly looked up at him, nudging his torso.

"Fitz..." She called.

Fitz looked down at her with raised eyebrows. "Yes?'

"Hai degli occhi belli."

Shaking his head completely enamored, he smiled at her. "As do you, fireball."

...

"First kiss." Fitz asked.

"Um..." Olivia squinted trying to remember. "Oh! My very first Cotillion Ball. I was a nervous wreck. With my mom being on the committee and all, I couldn't fuck up. So minutes before I was to have my first dance with this kid, Parker, I was having a panic attack that not even my best friend Abby could tame. And I didn't want anybody to get my parents. So this kid - Parker, he grabbed my hand and locked us together inside a dark closet and slammed one hell of a kiss on me. I stop bitching right then."

Fitz wiggled his eyebrows at her, teasing her. "He sounds like a real Prince Charming." He said. "But seriously? In a closet? That's so fucking cliche."

"Oh shut up." Olivia rolled her eyes, slapping his arm. "It ended up biting me in the ass though."

"How so?" Fitz asked.

"My friend Victoria liked him. But he liked me."

"Dramaaaa!" Fitz sing in a high-key note, causing Olivia to burst into laughter.

"Okay, it's my turn now." Olivia said. "When was your first time with Autumn."

"My first time wasn't with Autumn." Fitz replied.

Olivia gasped, wiggling her pointer finger at him as if she just caught him in a lie. "And you said you didn't get girls."

"For fuck's sake. I said I was poor but I never said I was a monk." Fitz said. "She was older than me. Her name was Penelope. Summer of my freshman year. She came to visit her best friend and her parents owned a beach house where she invited me to come smoke weed with her and her friends. Too many shots of tequila later and a fat blunt of surprisingly good weed, we ended up under the pier."

"Sounds memorable." Olivia teased.

Fitz shrugged. "Eh. What about your first time."

"College..."

"College!" Fitz cried. "Goddamn. You waited that long?"

"Why is that so hard to believe?" Olivia frowned.

"It's not." Fitz said. "It's just surprising, is all."

"I guess I just wasn't one of those girls. Don't get me wrong, I'm not gonna pretend that I was Virgin Mary. I partied a lot. And God knows I've sneaked out of my window more times than I can count for what is known as _'Netflix and chill'_ nowadays but I never felt the need to rush it." Olivia explained. "I was fine with getting and staying at second base. That was fun for me. I wasn't one of those girls who felt it was a burden and just needed to get rid of it for the sake of not being a prude. If I was going to get _my cherry_ popped- so to speak- it needed to be with someone I cared about for more than two seconds. And they needed to know what the hell they were doing."

"Did-"

"Paul."

"Did Paul know what he was doing?" Fitz asked.

It was Olivia's turn to shrug now. "He was experienced enough."

"Did he... you know..."

Olivia smirked. "Are you asking if I came?"

Fitz swallowed. Do guys have this kind of conversations with their girl who's their friend? Maybe some did and that was perfectly normal. But they did often feel attracted to that friend? More importantly, why did he care if she came when she gave _it_ away?

"Sure." He replied.

"It was raining." Olivia told him. "I like it when it rains so that helped sooth my nerves. It was fine I guess."

"You guess?" Fitz raised his eyebrows.

"It was fine." Olivia said. "I didn't see fireworks like those cliche novels say but it was nice. Then again, I didn't really have anything to compare it to, so..."

Fitz was speechless. This wasn't telling him anything good. "Jesus, fireball."

"Don't say it."

* * *

The next few weeks they were basically inseparable. When they weren't spending time getting in trouble and slightly breaking the law together; they spent endless nights on the phone just talking about everything. And sometimes, nothing at all.

Olivia having never had that kind of platonic relationship with a guy before didn't know what she had with Fitz could feel so good. So carefree. Never in a millions years would she think that lying on the grass of an empty park after dark, watching the stars and stuffing their face with ice cream, being fat asses together was something she would ever do with a guy out of pure delight if she wasn't fucking that person.

But then again, she never thought that she'd find so much fun in discussing literature during late night phone calls with anyone either. There was just no words to describe what she felt when she was around Fitz. All she knew was that she was happy. He made her happy and she loved that they could make talking about Hamlet- the most boring play in the English language sound interesting.

She loved how smart he was. The way he sees things in this completely different light than everybody else. For someone who claimed he didn't pay school no mind as student, he was easily one of the smartest people Olivia has ever came across in her lifetime. Then again, who says school was where all the knowledge was?

All of that was also why she was pushing an hour phone call conversation with her mother because the woman refused to believed that Fitz and her wasn't an item. The fact that she could be such great friend with a guy and not be giving benefits on the side was impossible. The sky should've been falling down by now. The dead should be walking out of their graves and seas should be turning red because the idea that she could be just friends with someone- a guy least of all- was improbable.

She had her redhead of a best friend to blame. Abby couldn't accompany her this year to her mother's Fourth of July annual barbeque and fireworks fest because Cruella aka Deborah Whelan - Abby's mother was in town for the long holiday weekend and the redhead swore she couldn't get rid of the woman because Deborah made it clear she came all the way from a small little town in Wisconsin to spend time with her only daughter and anything less than that would really upset her.

Olivia has never done well alone at family events and since this year Abby couldn't be her date; her buffer; her partner in crime, she was going to ask Fitz to accompany her to face The Pope and Lewis crowd because she didn't want to be alone and she really needed her mother to get on board and not jump at his throat the second he walks into the Pope household.

So far, that was proving to be hard because her mother was convinced that her and Fitz had something beyond friendship going on. Leave it to her to boost him to her parents, only to have her mother call bullshit on her.

"Honey, there is no shame in it." Her mother continued to ramble. "You know what they say: _the best way to get over one is to get under one_."

"Mom!" Olivia exclaimed. She's seriously going to pull her hair out. "I'm not under him or anyone. _Especially him_! He's just my friend and I happen to like being around him a lot because it's just easy with him. Nothing feels complicated when I'm around him. Still all of that doesn't mean we're banging each other."

"I'll believe it when I see it."

 _Goddamn it!_

"Since Abby can't make it this year, I'm gonna ask him to come to the Fourth of July barbeque with me. Promise you'll leave him alone." Olivia begged

"As if I could be so cruel." Her mother said, feigning offence.

"I know you, mother."

"Bring him." Maya said. "I'd love to meet this Fitzgerald persona that has you all _'high-school-teenage-girl-crush'_ on me again."

"I'm gonna hang up now, mom. You're giving me a headache."

888

As soon as Olivia hung up with her mother, she dialed Fitz's. She had yet to ask him about coming with her and she really hoped he would agree.

"How's _my_ girl?" He answered the phone.

Olivia smiled- a blush flourishing her cheek. He was one smooth man, that Fitzgerald. "She's fine." She replied. "She wants to know what your plans for tonight are."

"You can tell _her_ I'm all _hers_ after 5:00 PM."

Olivia chuckled. Why was her heart going pitter-patter all of the sudden? "That works. Can she buy you dinner after a hard day's work?"

"You can let her know I said that's very generous of her. However, it's me who will be buying her dinner tonight. _She's too pretty_."

Olivia flushed. God bless him and God fuck him. Why in the hell does he have to be such a perfect cinnamon roll?

"Flattery will get you everywhere, Mr. Grant." She sighed.

She could hear the smile in his voice when he spoke again. "Can I pick you up at six?"

Biting her lower lip to keep the smile on her face from splitting her face in half, she agreed to their plans for the evening. "Sounds great."

Her evening wasn't going to be so dull after all.

Just before she hung up, he chipped in with his nickname for her. "Fireball?"

"Yeah?"

"I can't wait to see you."

...

By the time the clock in her living room strike five o'clock, Olivia was already out of the shower in fluffy peach robe, setting up in front of her large mirror to get ready. She decided to leave her hair in their natural form of loose curls- only spraying a bit of olive oil in them to keep them nice and shiny. A touch of mascara in her lashes, matte brown eyeshadow, a stroke of winged eyeliner to accentuate her brown eyes and a brush of pink blush completed her light makeup with nude painted lips.

When the big needle on the clock turned to the six, Olivia had already changed into three different outfits, feeling hopeless while replaying her phone call with her mom earlier this afternoon in her head. Could it really be? Was she starting to develop something for Fitz that was beyond friendship? Sure she desired comfort because she has needs to satisfy like every other woman on this planet with a vagina, but she had just recently gone through a breakup and the wounds of that whole catastrophe was still very fresh and tender. She couldn't possibly be ready for something serious with anybody.

And even if she liked Fitz in that way, it's not like it would matter if he didn't feel the same way back.

 _Fuck!_

Leave it to her mother and her hopeless romantic heart to plant this seed in her head when she was just minutes away from seeing Fitz.

Deciding that her designer's clothes could go to hell, Olivia took her phone to check the weather app. It was a beautiful day in the New York City streets. At seventy-two degrees, it wasn't too muggy. It was just perfect. So she dig deeper into her closet for something chic and comfortable. Something that wasn't too formal or flashy. Something that complimented her well and was weather appropriate. She dressed while keeping in mind Fitz's good looks. She didn't want to be overdressed or underdressed comparing to him. That man could literally wear a plastic bag and look sexy as hell. It wasn't fair.

In a long navy blue skirt with white floral print; white halter top and six inches studded black sandals, she felt dressed for an evening out with her best friend.

Smiling to herself in the oval mirror in front of her, she approved of both her looks and thoughts. She might not know Fitz long enough to upgrade him to Best Friend status but he was well on his way there and she really couldn't wait to see him tonight.

...

After his phone call to with Olivia, Fitz clocked out fifteen minutes before his shift was supposed to end and hit the showers in the locker room. He was afraid if he went home, traffic jam would make him late for their reservation and the last thing he wanted was to make Olivia wait on him.

That wouldn't be very gentlemanly of him.

And he prided himself on being the guy that shows up early, opens doors and gives compliments.

Thirty minutes later, he stood in front of the bathroom mirrors clean shaven and casually dressed in dark denim jeans, a black v-neck t-shirt and navy suede lace up oxfords. His curls were damp and combed back to the best ability of his fingers. He looked good. He approved.

Deciding he should be on his way already, he made his way to his office to get his wallet and car keys. He halted to a stop outside the locker room when he ran smack into his friend Stephen who was spotting a grin on his face.

"Who's the girl?" He asked.

Fitz blinked, shaking his head. "What are you talking about?"

"The one that has you clocking out fifteen minutes before your shift is over." Stephen said.

"That's none of your business." Fitz replied.

Stephen laughed, running his callus fingers through his hair. "Is it if you want me to close for you tonight."

Fitz groaned. The asshole was really going to blackmail him into telling him who Olivia was. He wasn't ready for anybody to know about Olivia and he knew that was a little weird because Olivia was just his friend but still, he liked it better when he didn't have to share her with anyone.

"She's a girl. Who's my friend." He said vaguely.

"Okay..." Stephen smiled. "What is the name of this girl who's your friend?"

"Why do you care?" Fitz raised his eyebrows.

"I'm closing for you, bossman." Stephen reminded him.

Fitz sighed. "Her name's Olivia."

"Are you going on a date right now?"

"Does it fucking matter?" Fitz replied frustratedly.

He was already running late. He didn't have the time for twenty one questions from Stephen.

"It matters."

"Why?"

"Because you need to get laid."

"I'm gonna pretend you didn't just say that."

Stephen smirked, wiggling his eyebrows. "Is it a date?"

"No."

"Lies."

"No."

"Fine."

"I should fire you."

"For what?" Stephen asked amusingly. "Because you got a hot date tonight and I'm making you late?"

Fitz shook his head. "No. Because you ask too many damn questions." He said. "Now out of my way. I gotta go."


	4. Chapter 4

She was beautiful. That wasn't news to Fitz but standing on the sidewalk in front of her apartment building surrounded by thousands of people going about their business, Fitz only saw her. A goddess in a summer's night looking effortlessly beautiful in her natural glow.

He couldn't help himself from dragging his wanting eyes all over her body. Head to toe and back again. If the slit of her skirt showcasing her long olive legs wasn't enough to kick start his heart; then those sandals that she wore could very well have been the death of him right in the middle of the sidewalk.

"You're really trying to get me in trouble, aren't you?" When she entered his arm in a long hug, the intoxicating, feminine smell of her Dior perfume filled his nose and he couldn't help himself from holding her a little longer and tighter.

Pulling away, she blinked at him with pretty doe brown eyes innocently. "Whatever do you mean, sir?"

"Nothing." Fitz shook his head.

All he knows is that everybody better keep their eyes and hands to themselves tonight while she's in his arms.

"Where are we heading?" Olivia asked, clapping her hands together excitedly.

"We're going roller skating baby." Fitz replied.

He hadn't thought about where they would be going when he offered to buy her dinner instead. The only thing on his mind was that he was going to be spending time with her. For all he cares, they could be stuck in a closet together and it would be fun to him as long as she was around.

So when she asked where they were going, only one thing popped in his mind and seeing the expression on her face at that moment was everything.

"I'm not dressed to go roller skating." She said.

Fitz chuckled. "You're _fine_." Special emphasis on fine because she was. And no matter what she wore, it won't change the fact that she's still the most beautiful woman he's ever met. "You're fine." He wrapped his arms around her neck and tucked her at his side before planting a loud kiss on her cheek.

The night was young and beautiful so they decided to ditch the car and explore New York city on their feet.

...

Growing up, Olivia didn't do things like ice skating and roller skating. A day of fun as a teenager for her consisted of luxurious spa treatments, hair and makeup finessed and a lot shopping. Occasionally, she went to band concerts, movies but other than that, the rest of the things she did required a plane more often than not. So standing in the middle of a roller skating rink felt both odd and thrilling to her.

"I've never been roller skating." She confessed to Fitz.

His jaw dropped. "What did your boyfriends take you to do when you were fifteen?"

Olivia was almost embarrassed when she thought about it. Coming from a family with a wealthy background, she never realized how much of a difference that made in her life growing up. She went to the most expensive schools, the best of the best was hers because money was of no object to her. So until now, she didn't realize how much of the simple fun stuff she's missed. She spent her lifetime dating men who thought they had to impress her with expensive things in order for her to like them. Come to think of it, she's never even been in a hot air balloon, let alone skating.

Blinking back to reality, Olivia erased the embarrassment from her face and put a smile on. "For your information mister, I didn't start dating until I was seventeen." She informed. "And my first boyfriend flew me to San Francisco for sushi on our first date."

"Well, excuse-moi, Madame." Fitz gasped dramatically. "But your boyfriends were stupid."

"You're stupid." She rolled her eyes.

Fitz dipped his thumb down, shaking his head at her. "That was a weak comeback." He said.

Then he clasped his hand together with hers and entwined their fingers together.

...

Olivia couldn't even count how many times she fell on her butt. And she couldn't count how many times she called Fitz an asshole either for laughing at her. But after a hour of dancing to 90's music and busting her ass, she could honestly say that it's the most fun she's had in forever. Now sweating, Fitz kneeled at her feet to take off her skates and replacing them back with her heels so they could finally go get something to eat.

As she watched him tend to her, Olivia couldn't suppress the urge to bend down and wrap her arms around his neck in a hug. And though taken by surprise, that didn't stop Fitz from returning the hug.

"What was that for?" Fitz asked when they pulled apart.

Olivia shrugged at him, smiling. "That, was just because." She replied. Then she went on surprising him even more by brushing her lips against his cheek in a soft kiss. "And that is a thank you because you just made all my teenage girl dreams come true."

Fitz smiled at her and reached up to pull an unruly lock of curls in front of her face. She grimaced at him with a cute pout and he let her hair go with a wink. "Anytime Merida."

"I hate you." Olivia shook her head at him.

...

Not too far from the roller skating rink, they found a little mexican restaurant with outdoor seatings- ivy-covered brick wall, two seater bistro tables and twinkling overhead lights- it offered a relaxed and cozy vibe coupled with the favorable summer's night weather, they were sold on having their dinner there instantly.

Sitting under the umbrella gazebo Olivia felt at zen surrounded by the cleansing New York City air, good energy and the overzealous plants wafting through the calm wind. Fitz's company was just the icing on top of the cake.

While they waited for their entrees to come, they enjoyed their appetizer of mozzarella sticks and crispy calamari with marinara and jalapeno tartar sauce. Olivia gave up her choice of red wine for a mason jar of gin and strawberry-lemon cocktail.

Fitz's favorite part about this night was watching Olivia eat. He loved the fact that she wasn't one of those girls who would stuff their face with lettuce and call it a meal because they wanted to look like the girl on the cover of Maxim magazine.

When their order of brochetas de camaron y carne came - which was a fancy spanish way of saying skewers of jumbo shrimp and filet mignon with pepper, onion, zucchini, mushroom and tomato served with mexican rice- they ate with gusto, moaning with every bite.

"Will you come to my parent's cottage with me for their Fourth of July barbeque?" Olivia figured it was now or never if she was going to ask. But his quiet silence after she did wasn't helping with her nerves. "Abby usually goes with me but she had to take a raincheck this year and I really don't want to go alone. But it's a fun gathering."

Fitz smiled at her. She was really trying to sell this to her but his mind was already made up the second he asked. Letting her ramble was probably mean of him but it was amusing to him. "I'll go." He finally said.

"You will?" She asked.

Fitz nodded; reaching for a napkin to wipe his mouth. "Yeah. Of course I'll go. I get to meet the woman who gave birth to you. Do you really think I'll pass up that opportunity?"

Olivia rolled her eyes at him but she couldn't keep the smile that bloomed her face. "My mother is very taken, mister." She teased.

Fitz sighed, feigning disappointment with a pout. "I suppose I can settle for an aunt then."

"Shameless."

888

They'd been walking arm and arm for the better part of an hour, exploring New York City in all of it's beautiful lights. It was amazed Olivia that she's lived in this great state all her life but she's just now discovering the pretty little things that really makes it unique.

"Look..." Fitz pointed with alacrity at a long line in front of what looked like a food truck in Times Square.

"What am I looking at?" Olivia asked.

It was no surprise to see a long line of people waiting in front of a food truck. People in New York basically lived off food trucks, so it was amusing to Olivia that Fitz's Californian soul found it fascinating.

"No, seriously. Look at what's in the people's hand."

A closer look at a young girl with a huge glowing ball of cotton candy answered why the line at this particular truck was was so long.

Olivia smiled to herself inwardly. This was so typical of New Yorkers and she loved that about them. It was truly the little things that were the most beautiful. That teenage girl sharing her first kiss with the boy that really knows who she is but loves her anyways- flaws and all; that father bonding with his son over their favorite baseball team; that old couple celebrating their fiftieth anniversary over the same flavored ice cream they had on that first date decades ago; that homosexual couple with the entwined fingers walking with blissful smiles on their faces and throwing the middle finger at society for daring to judge them, and all those other people standing in their truth. It was all thanks to them because without those little things, the world would have crumbled into pieces by now. And with that realization, Olivia decided then that her newest favorite thing in the entire world was taking long walks with Fitzgerald Grant and discovering the little _epiphanies_ that made the world seem perfect in the midst of chaos, terror, death and solitude.

"Can we get some?" She looked up at him with pleading eyes. "Please?" She poked his ribcage playfully and batted her lashes at him prettily for added persuasion. "Please, please, please, pleaaaase!"

"God, I hate how cute you are." Fitz smiled. With her in front of him, he wrapped his arms around her petite waist and laid his head on her shoulder as they got in line with the rest of the New Yorkers to wait for their own glowing cone of cotton candy.

...

Olivia closed her eyes and moaned as the taste of sugarcane dissolved on her tongue like warm honey. The world whirled around her and suddenly she was brought back to her childhood.

 _Age seven in Louisiana, the southern summer sun pipping hot, scalding her skin but she's laughing because she just stole her cousin Harrison's favorite toy and he's being a cry baby about it. He went to tattle on her to their Nana and she could hear her grandmother's southern accent calling after her through the window in the backyard; "Vie give your cousin his toy back!"_

 _"Snitches get stitches and I didn't take it Nana!" She shouted back- dragging a yellow kite at her tail._

 _"Liar, liar, pants on fire! She took it Nana." Harrison is still crying- but now he's sitting on top of the kitchen counter, assisting Nana with making her famous homemade mango jam so he's a little bit less hysterical over the reptile toy._

 _"And liars get no cotton candy when the truck passes by at six o'clock."_

 _It was all the convincing she needed before she was scaling the window of the kitchen like a spider and popping her head through. "Here's your toy cry baby." She handed Harrison the toy with a smile. "Can I still get cotton candy Nana?"_

 _Her smile was Nana gigi's favorite thing in the entire world. With her two front teeth missing, she was the cutest little thing. "What is Nana gon' do with you, hunh, Vie?"_

 _"Pinch my chubby cheeks and love me to death?"_

 _Nana shook her head; her salt and pepper curls bouncing and her smile ever bright. "Smarty pants."_

...

Olivia was brought back to reality when she felt strong arms shaking her. "Livvie..." and that desperate voice.

She opened her eyes and the tears ran freely down her face in a straight line. "Hi." She whispered.

"You're crying, pretty girl." Fitz said, reaching to wipe away another drop before it could run down face. "What's wrong?"

She sniffled, a chuckle escaping her lips. 'I'm fine. I promise I'm not a _cry baby_. This is just my inner childhood saying thank you." Olivia explained as Fitz continued to wipe away her tears, careful not to ruin her makeup in the process.

"You're okay, fireball?"

Olivia nodded. "I'm fine."

"You're sure?"

"I'm okay. I promise." And to prove it, she gave him the smile she knew he needed to feel reassured.

"There you are." He smiled too- bright light twinkling in his eyes charmingly. "Hi."

"Hi." And with that, she let him pull her into his arms in a tight embrace and the love she felt from that simple touch vibrated through her bones and threatened to bring her to tears again because she couldn't remember anyone ever hugging her like this.

This was an epiphany on it's own. _This was their epiphany_.


	5. Chapter 5

Olivia woke up early Saturday morning on The Fourth of July feeling particularly chipper. With a smile on her face, she got out of bed and started her morning routines. With a full day ahead of her, she knew that she wouldn't have time to attend her regular morning pilates class so as she brushed her teeth, she did lunges all over her apartment in order to keep herself flexible and healthy.

By eight o'clock, she was running out of her apartment with her cup of veggie shake in hand, flagging a yellow cab to go meet Abby for breakfast at Le Petit Dejeuner, a french breakfast bistro across Central Park. She figured since she was leaving for the Hampton to her parent's cottage without her this year, the least they could is keep up with tradition. And every year, before they made the drive to her parent's they spent the better half of their morning until noon treating themselves. Breakfast was always a must.

When the taxi driver dropped her in front of the little restaurant, Olivia made sure to be generous with her tip, knowing how crazy it was going to get as soon as the city really wakes up. And if her tip could relieve this old man of his duties early to go home and celebrate with his family, then she could say that she had done one good thing for today.

As soon as Olivia entered through the double doors of the restaurant, her eyes landed on her little redhead friend. It was easy to spot her considering she was the only patron blunt enough take away the chef from his dues by distracting him with her flirtatious nature at eight o'clock in the morning.

Shaking her head, Olivia marched towards their table and politely interrupted. "Bonjour."

Turning his head, a huge smile graced their chef's face, his bright emerald green eyes shining with absolute joy and his dimples piercing, making him easily one of the most handsome man to ever walk the face of the earth with his light brown hair. James Novak Beene was the proud owner of Le Petit Dejeuner with his partner Cyrus Beene and together they've been running this very successful business for over twelve years and time has only brought them more fortune. And both her and Abby have been proud customers for at least six years.

But even though Abby knew that the man was as queer as a nine bob, that didn't stop her from shamelessly flirting with the man every time they saw each other.

"Olivia mon amour, ma cherie!" James greeted, absentmindedly throwing her arms around Olivia and planting sweet kisses on her cheeks. "Ça fait beaucoup trop longtemps que je ne t'ai pas vu. Comment ca se fait?"

Abby sat in her chair, totally forgotten by the two as they indulged in their own foreign conversation. "Bitch." She mouthed at Olivia.

James twirled Olivia like the pretty little thing that she is as he continued to gush over her. "Je suis jaloux." He admitted.

Olivia chuckled. "Mais, pourquoi?"

"Je suis jaloux de la beauté que tu obtiens à chaque fois que je te vois."

Blushing at his compliment, Olivia fanned herself. He was a sweet talker and it didn't hurt that he was really pretty also. And though she would never admit it, she relished in the fact that she could show off a little and keep up a conversation in French with him. Albeit short, it was always a thrill to speak to James. Even if James were straight, he still wouldn't be her type but she could appreciate a good looking man. And it surely didn't hurt because he really could make a girl feel special.

"Oh s'il te plait. Arrête." Olivia continued to blush. "I'm just trying to keep up with you. How's Cy?"

James sighed, rolling his eyes at the mention of his husband's name. "Vieux et grincheux."

That much Abby understood. "I'm telling the Beene flicking man." She chipped in, causing both Olivia and James to burst in a raucous of laughter.

They played catch up for a few more minutes before James pulled Olivia's chair for her. "A _ssieds_ -toi." He waited until Olivia did as she was told before planting a kiss on her cheek. Upon getting a serious pout from Abby, he shook his head, knowing that she was waiting to be dotted on also.

So he obliged and kissed the redhead's cheek too before making a polite exit to get them started on their breakfast.

Olivia couldn't help smiling. He was a very sweet man. And she was seriously starting to question why she stopped coming to his restaurant as often as she and Abby used to.

"I really want pigs to fly." Abby said randomly.

Olivia raised her eyebrows. "Okay." She snorted. "I've heard weirder shit come out of your mouth. But why exactly would you want pigs to start flying all of the sudden?"

"I don't know!" Abby replied exasperatedly. "Maybe then I can finally get my hands on this man's buns. I've been trying for six years."

"You do know he's gay right? And married also?"

"So what?" Abby shrugged. "I don't mind sharing with Cyrus."

Olivia shook her head, visibly shuddering. "You're shameless."

"Don't I know it." Abby wiggled her eyebrows.

Minutes later, a speeding rack was being wheeled to their tables and the delicious odor of French dishes filled the air and registered to their nose. Instantly, Olivia's stomach started growling. She hadn't realized how much she missed James's dishes until this very minute.

"This is too much." Olivia gasped.

James dismissed her with a wave of his hand. "Nonsense." He said, his French accent still very thick. "I take care of my girls."

But Abby ever the shameless redhead that she is simply rubbed her palms together as a grin graced her cheeks. "My body's ready James."

"Of course." James teased. "You girls holler if you need anything else."

Seeing as though it was beginning to fill up very quickly as people started to show up, starved for a good breakfast, both Olivia and Abby urged him to go attend to business. But he wouldn't let up until they promised to call him if they needed anything more.

But looking at the many wonderful plates in front of them, they were pretty sure there would be no need to inconvenience him. Still, they humored him and promised.

So as they dig into their breakfast, heavenly moans of delight escaped their lips and the two best friends took that time to simply catch up on and bring each other up-to-date on everything else.

"Has Edison called since what shall not be named?" Abby asked out of curiosity.

Olivia shook her head. Refusing to let Edison come between this glorious breakfast they were having, she settled for taking a healthy swig of her bloody orange mimosa. She indulged more than she should at barely nine o'clock in the morning, but she figured it was five in the afternoon somewhere around the world. So it was whatever.

"I haven't seen him or talked to him. And I'd like to keep it that way." She replied.

"Good." Abby nodded. "I was just checking."

"Everything's good in that area." Olivia promised. "How's Deborah?"

Abby groaned. This time it was her turn to take a swig of courage liquor. "She's been in town for barely two days and I wanna pull my hair, Olivia."

"You have no hair." Olivia reminded her, snickering when the redhead threw a strawberry at her.

"You and Deborah both suck the life out of me." Abby huffed.

"But you love us anyways." Olivia smiled.

"Yeah. Okay." Abby nodded. "You just keep telling that to yourself."

"Of course I will. Cause it's true." Olivia beamed. "What else is new?"

"Oh!" Abby exclaimed excitedly. "I finally got a new hire at the parlor. By the end of Friday nights, it's not gonna feel like somebody chopped off my fingers anymore."

"It's about damn time. That definitely calls for a celebration." Olivia grabbed her glass of mimosa on cue with Abby and they both click their glasses together in cheers before taking a sip. "So who is it?"

"It's a girl." Abby said. "Fresh out of NYU and she's crazy talented. Her name's Quinn. She starts on Monday and I think I'm gonna like her." The redhead continued. "She's kind of a bitch. Just like me. But I've seen the work she's done and I'm telling you, she's a little mini me."

Olivia chuckled. "Look at you go. Sounds like you found your match. At last."

"Are you jealous?" Abby teased. "Don't be jealous. You know you're always gonna be my main hoe."

Rolling her eyes, Olivia popped a grape in her mouth. "Whatever." She mumbled as she chewed.

Before she knew it, Abby was getting out of her chair to come annoy her in hers. She started by trying to pamper her face with kisses which Olivia tried to dodge at every attempt.

"Olivia Carolyn Pope! You better let me kiss you or I will make a scene."

"Okay. Damn!" Olivia exclaimed. "Why you gotta use my government name like that though?"

"Cause you're my day one ride or die bitch. And I love you!"Abby replied, planting a loud smacking kiss on Olivia's cheek before taking her seat again.

"You're odd." Olivia said. "Truly, truly odd. But anyways, I think me, you and the new girl should do a girl's night out soon so I can meet her and feel her out."

"Sounds good." Abby agreed. "Maybe end of the next week. I've got a full sheet after the holiday."

"Whatever works best for you." Olivia complied.

Huffing, they realized that they'd managed to clear off most of everything and they were both too full to function. But time was only moving faster and they had other stuff to do together.

"Should we get out of here?" Abby asked.

"Yeah." Olivia nodded. "And no matter what James says, we're paying for this breakfast."

"And yet you say I'm odd?" Abby scoffed. "If he wants to give us free food, why can't we just accept it?"

"Because it's not fair." Olivia argued.

The redhead had never heard anything more ludicrous. Why was accepting a free, healthy breakfast unfair?

"Why?" Abby asked.

"Because he fucking has employees he needs to pay. And yeah, we're his friends and he's always going to insist on our tab being on the house but at the end of the day, it doesn't change the fact that this is a damn business and people depend on him for their paycheck." Olivia explained. "Plus we're respectable women. You own a booming tattoo parlor and though I'm currently on a very long vacation, I'm very spoiled and rich. We can afford it, so we're paying the damn tab."

"Fine." Abby agreed. But she still couldn't resist. "Bitch."

...

The two split the bill and as expected, James fought them on it until eventually, Olivia made him see reason. It was the same dance every time so it was to be expected and every time, it warmed Olivia's heart to see how humble he truly was.

"Give our love to Cyrus okay?" Olivia said as she hugged him.

"You tell that husband of yours that I will gladly have my way with you if he ever gets tired of you."

James chuckled. "Oui, Oui, Abigail."

"I will hold you to that." Abby noted.

James turned to Olivia again and rubbed her arms as he hugged her. He was truly fond of Olivia. He loved everything about her. From her inward and outward beauty to her sophisticated sense of fashion and finally, her personality. And seeing her always brought a smile to his face.

"Don't be so long next time, yeah?" He asked. "Tu me manques beaucoup."

"We'll be sure to visit again soon." Olivia promised. "Hopefully you'll take a break from trying to be richer than everyone else in Manhattan and we can all have dinner."

"That'll be nice."

The trio shared final hugs at their departure after agreeing to their plans to get together soon. And before late, Abby and Olivia were in the streets, joining the hustle bustle of New York City, both enjoying the feeling of patriotism that The Fourth of July ignited.

...

They made it to Vanity Spa & Salon just in time for their appointment. Upon their arrival, they were treated with the utmost care. They were offered a room where the two best friends enjoyed the pampering of an hour long massage and avocado facials. Followed by that amazing treatment, they spent some time in the sauna, getting rid of all the toxins in their pores while keeping hydrated with refreshing, nourishing fruit and herb infused water. A long relaxing shower later, they both dressed before they headed to get started on their hair.

Time seemed to have float by as Olivia sat in her chair, enjoying the feel of fingers massaging through scalp as her hairdresser thoroughly washed through her hair. Between that and the very soft, quiet classical music playing in the overhead speakers, Olivia was nearly asleep.

 _This is as close to heaven as it gets_. She thought to herself before letting herself drift briefly.

Next, they moved to the beauty salon where they spent the following hour getting their eyebrows done and nails expertly manicured. Nothing had ever felt more heavenly.

"The only thing we're not doing today is new tattoos." Olivia chuckled zen-fully as she looked at Abby next to her.

The redhead had an equally blissful look on her face and it made Olivia that much happier to see her relaxing. They'd planned this girl day for quite some time and she was glad that they got to spend this time together. If there was anybody that deserved all this pampering, Olivia knew it was Abby. Being the owner of a tattoo parlor may not seem all that stressful, but it was. She worked tirelessly to come up with her own designs. She was always fully booked and her tattoos took anywhere between two to five hours and that was just on a slow day and that was no small task. It's a lot of time to be holding a tattoo gun to someone's body, not to mention the concentration and patience that it required. So Olivia was really happy that they got to do this together.

"I got you if you need to get tattooed." Abby said.

It's been awhile since Olivia's been inspired to put more ink on her skin. But she knew that she definitely wanted new ink. Perhaps she'll be inspired sooner or later.

"Maybe soon." Olivia replied.

"Thanks for this." Abby said gratefully. "I really needed this."

"Day one right?"

The redhead smirked. "Day one riding hoes for life."

888

After a much needed run, Fitz busted through his loft breathlessly heaving for air. His lungs felt like they'd been set on fire and every muscle in his body ached but he had never felt better in his life. Having gotten the quick ten miles in was a daily achievement for him and he felt good about himself knowing that he was doing everything possible to keep himself healthy.

He allowed himself to cool down while draining a bottle of purified water. Finally feeling like a functioning human being again after a couple minutes, he made his way to his bedroom and started stripping out of his sweaty running gears, in desperate need of a shower to feel clean and refreshed. Fifteen minutes later, he emerged from the bathroom with a fluffy white towel wrapped around his bottom half. Droplets of water glistened his soft skin and hit the floor as he made his way back to his kitchen.

Not having to worry about being efficient and flexible, he took his time, enjoying preparing himself some breakfast. With all the festivities going on today, Fitz figured that nobody really wanted to bother with the stress of exercise because who wants to worry about counting calories and weight when burgers and corn and sausages is all that they will be smelling? Fitz wasn't even mad when some of his clients started canceling on their booked sessions with him and the other trainers. Besides it worked great in his favor so he opted not to open the gym at all today and gave his whole staff the long weekend off considering he was going to be out of town soon. Smiling to himself, he couldn't help the excitement he felt as he rummaged through his fridge to find something quick and easy to cook up for breakfast.

Deciding to pass on his usual dose of caffeine, he thought better to make himself a peanut butter protein shake to polish off with his smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel.

Still with much time ahead of him before he went to pick Olivia up for their trip, he decided to he was going to try and squeeze in a nap before hitting the road with her.

Just as he had been thinking about her, his phone started vibrating on the granite counter with her nickname flashing on the screen. "Speak of the devil." He mumbled before picking up the call.

"What?"

"Hey, be nice." Olivia chastised.

"In case you missed it, I was impersonating you." Fitz said.

"I don't answer the phone like that." Olivia replied defensively.

"Oh really?" Fitz teased. "Last week I called you, excited as hell granted that it was after midnight and you were like, _'What Fitzgerald?! There better be a damn good reason why you're calling me at this ungodly hour of the night._ '" Then he continued. "The next morning I call to see if you want to do breakfast with me and this was you again," He put a pitch to his voice to perfectionate his imitation of her. "' _What? Go away! I'm still sleepy. You kept me on the phone until three o'clock in the morning'."_

"Okay fine!" Olivia laughed. "Point taken. What are you doing?"

"Breakfast." Fitz replied. "Missing you."

"You saw me three days ago." Olivia reasoned.

"Still too long without my fireball." Fitz said.

"Aww." Olivia cooed. "I suppose I miss you too. I'm excited about today. I'm just on my way home to grab a quick change of clothes and pack."

"Wait. Where are you?" Fitz asked.

"In a cab." Olivia replied. "I just got done with girl's day with Abby. Since she can't make it today, I figured we could spend the morning together before I was all yours."

"I like the sound of that." Fitz told her shamelessly.

"Of course you do." Olivia teased. "Pick me up in one hour?"

"Yes ma'am." Fitz replied.

"Alright. See you in one hour handsome."

Hanging up, Fitz put an alarm for a half hour nap before he made his way to his bedroom.

...

 _Half hour later..._

Fitz woke up to the annoying beeping sound of his cell phone alarm. Though annoyed, he couldn't help the rejuvenating feeling that coursed through him as he stretched his body. Shutting off the alarm, he pushed the covers off him knowing that he had exactly half an hour left to go pick up the most beautiful girl in the world for a fun road trip to the Hampton.

That thought alone was motivation enough to get him up and out of bed.

Butt naked as the day he was brought into the world, he walked to his adjoined bathroom and looked at his disheveled bed hair in the mirror. He ran his fingers through the curls, trying to tame them down only to have them rise up again rebelliously. "Stupid hair." He huffed.

Five minutes later, he emerged out of the bathroom with minty fresh breath and perfectly combed hair. He made a beeline straight to his closet and started to pick out his clothes while keeping in mind the beautiful summer day outside. In less than fifteen minutes, he was casually dressed and ready to go. Fastening his duffel bag over his shoulder, he patted his pockets to make sure he had all his necessities. Wallet, check. Cell phone, check. Keys, no check. He spent another two minutes in the room frustrated to no end looking for the stupid keys before he remembered that they were in the foyer in the living room.

Lights off, place neat and organized, he gave a quiet nod of approval to nobody or nothing in particular before he grabbed his keys and set the security alarm system. And finally, he was on his way out.

A smile graced his handsome features at the roaring sound of his engine when he fastened the keys in the ignition. Seat belt on, he turned on the radio to the perfect song and put the car on reverse.

...

...

...

"I'm downstairs." Fitz said when Olivia answered the phone.

"What?!" Olivia exclaimed, sounding frantic over something that Fitz couldn't even begin to guess about. "It's time already?"

"It's time already." Fitz confirmed. "Should I kill the engine and come up? Do you need more time?"

He heard something fall in the background followed by, "Je-shit. Damnit!"

He chuckled. "Liv?"

No answer.

"Do you need more time?" Fitz asked.

"No. I'm literally locking the door right now." Olivia lied, if only to buy herself five more minutes.

Fitz sighed. Catching her in a lie that he found way too amusing. "Fireball?"

"Yes, Ace?" Olivia responded, a smile in her voice. She really loved it when he called her fireball.

"I can hear the water in the sink running, baby." Fitz said. "Take your time. I'll be downstairs waiting."

"Five more minutes. I promise."

"Yeah, yeah." Fitz replied.

"You're the best."

"I know." Fitz said before hanging up.

Sighing, he let the phone rest between his legs and killed the engine. "Women." He mumbled.

...

After what seemed to have been an eternity, Fitz spotted her out of his rear-view mirror coming out of her building. Duffel bag over her shoulder, he watched as she looked for his car momentarily. And when she spotted it, he watched as a huge smile crossed her face. Exiting the angry bird app on his phone, he got out of the truck to greet her halfway.

"Eighty four years later." Fitz teased.

Being up close to her, he couldn't help but see the change in her. The beautiful glow to her skin was apparent to him and he swore that she got even more beautiful every time he sees her.

And she was probably the only girl to him that could make casual look sexy. In American eagle high-waisted denim shorts paired with a Venus Red American flag loose tank top and bluefish linen sperrys' she was easily the most beautiful woman in the entire world. He could barely tell that she was wearing any makeup, save for a few coats of mascara, a swap of eyeliner and and cherry red sun kissed lips. Her silky, dark hair fell in a curtain of straight waves on her shoulders.

Tearing his gaze from her, Fitz put himself to work to keep occupied by grabbing her Nike duffel bag from her and throwing it next to his in the back of the truck.

"Jesus Christ, you packed potatoes in that bag? We're literally leaving for three days."

Luggage free, Olivia flashed him a smile and shook her head. "A girl needs what a girl needs. Now stop exaggerating and give me hug." Wide arms open, she beckoned Fitz to close the short distance between them and he gladly obliged, walking into them and hugging her to his chest as he placed a kiss to her temple. He couldn't help from thrusting his fingers in the thick silky texture of her and inhaling the intoxicating smell of her Dior perfume while she was still in his arms.

 _She's hot and she smells good. Damn God, let me live!_

Pulling apart a few seconds later, they both matched each other's smiles.

"Look at you being all patriotic." Fitz teased, tugging on her loose tank top.

Olivia bit the inside of her mouth to keep from smiling and splitting her face in half. With a shrug, she thought better to play the nonchalant card. "Viva America, right?"

"Viva America, indeed." Fitz agreed. "The eighty four years wait is almost worth it." He teased further. "You look good. And I like your haircut."

Wide eyes, Olivia looked into the sea blue of his eyes. "You noticed." She said, almost as if she couldn't believe it.

And she didn't because she didn't expect him to notice every little detail about her. All she did was trim her split ends so the fact that he saw a difference at all made his compliment that much more thrilling yet surprising to her.

"Of course I noticed." Fitz grinned.

 _I notice everything about you-_ He wanted to add, but he thought better not to cross that bridge and make things awkward between them. They had a three hour car ride ahead of them. The last thing he wanted was to have some weird tension going on. This trip is supposed to be fun and he'd be damned if he did anything stupid to ruin it.

"Well thank you." Olivia smiled. "And you don't look so bad yourself."

 _Not so bad my ass._ Olivia thought. _His ass is fine as hell._

In tan khaki shorts laced with a dark-brown, woven leather belt, his long legs were in perfect view and the muscles of his shapely calves flexed under his weight. To match his casual look, he wore a round neck olive green t-shirt that clung to his broad shoulders and muscular chest. His tan double bottom fleece moccasins completed his outfit.

He looked delicious.

It was both unnerving and arousing to look at him. It should be illegal for someone to look that yummy. _That hot_. _That distracting_. And it bothered the living shit out of Olivia because it was literally taking all the self-control she had not to fan herself.

And to think that she's going to have to spend three hours in a car with him.

 _Have mercy!_

"Thank you." Fitz smiled. Clapping his hands together, he quickly brought the tension between them to a playful mood. "Are you road trip ready?"

Olivia nodded firmly. "I'm road trip ready." She declared. "I even made us a mixtape that we can listen to."

Fitz watched in amusement as her 5'4 self rise on the tip of her toes to reach for her duffel bag in the back of his truck. And though he knew he should've been a gentleman and reach for the bag himself after her second attempt, the backside view of her body enthralled him.

He knows just how hot and beautiful Olivia was. That was no secret to anybody with a pair of eyes. But Fitz _never_ allowed himself to ever _truly, really look_ for much too long for fear that he might lose his control and act on his _whore-mones_. The last thing he wanted was to do something that they both couldn't take back and end up jeopardizing their friendship. That thought alone terrified him. He couldn't even count how many times he's had to convince himself that his whore-mones weren't worth it.

But today, as God is his only witness, he allowed himself a thorough look and what he saw more than pleased him if the sudden stretch in his pants was any indication. From bottom to top, his drawled his blue eyes over her curvaceous, sexy body; shaking his head to keep from hitting his jaw on the floor.

Though she was just about average in height, her nutmeg legs glistening in the New York City sunlight was a sight to behold. Strong, sexy and shapely in denim shorts by her gymnastic and swimming athletic background and what he guessed were hours spent doing hot yoga. A perfect butt - toned with a bounce and a round firmness that he could only dream of grabbing, squeezing and definitely would _not_ object to bruising a little bit. Fitz didn't even want to guess how many hours of Pilates contributed in making her ass look so goddamn lusting. And if he closed his eyes long enough, Fitz could almost fathom being just a little bit worthy of wrapping her small, trimmed waist in his big strong arms and receive the gift of life from her luscious, swollen, pillowy lips.

He was thirsty as hell and there was no sense in denying it. But she wasn't his to touch. He didn't deserve her. A hundred lifetimes could pass him and he still would never be enough for her. Though that thought saddened him, some things were always better left untouched. She was too precious. He was bad news. Bad news as in basically the plague and it's a wonder to him that she's stuck around for as long as she has already knowing who he was and where he came from.

 _"I'm so going to hell."_ He mumbled.

"Did you say something?" She asked, still searching in her bag.

Fitz snapped out of it. _You dumb idiot_. He chastised himself. _Get your shit together._

"Yeah. I asked if you found it." He replied, lying through his goddamn teeth.

Seconds later, she turned around to face him again with a victorious smile on her lips. "Got it." She said waving a CD in front of his face. "This is going to be great."

She was such a cinnamon roll. Too precious for the world and Fitz couldn't help but share her enigmatic spirit. It's like all the excitement and optimism she was feeling was projecting towards him and he couldn't help but feel and be in the moment with her. "This is going to be great." He agreed.

Finally opening the passenger's door for her, he stepped aside so she could climb in the truck. Before she hopped in, she surprised the hell out of him by brushing her soft, pillowy lips in a feather light kiss across his cheek. "Thanks, Ace."

He wasn't sure what she was thanking him about, but he would take the credit nonetheless.

* * *

There aren't many people in this world that Olivia would willingly endure a three hour car ride with, but Fitz was proving to be her absolute favorite so far.

It was a perfect Friday and the New York City July summer was absolutely beautiful at 76 degrees. Sunglasses on, windows rolled down, Olivia couldn't even begin to fathom a better ride as she and Fitz drove out of the city with her mixtape CD (which consisted of at least a hundred songs all ranging from different genres and eras) blasting through his truck's speakers.

Thirty minutes into their quiet and peaceful ride, Fitz subconsciously reached for Olivia's hand and automatically their fingers clasped together like magnets. And when he brought their laced fingers to his lips to kiss the inside of her wrist, Olivia thought that she just might melt in her seat.

Still, she continued to look outside the window, enjoying the windy breeze and finding beauty in nature and in people as they pass countless large, architectural buildings while being serenaded by _Bon Jovi's Always._

"That was a great record." Fitz commented.

Olivia agreed with a nod of her head, mumbling the lyrics under her breath. "It was." She said.

"I didn't peg you for the type." Fitz said, honestly surprised by her taste in music.

"I listened to a lot of records growing up." Olivia shared. "And I also briefly went through a phase."

"Oh?" Fitz teased. "Care to share?"

"I had a crush on Jon Bon Jovi." She said blushing of embarrassment. "There. You heard it."

Fitz chuckled. "That's kind of adorable." He said. "And brave." He'd never admit to her what he did with his very first check from a paying job. At thirteen years old when he stopped thinking that girls were disgusting and accepted that they were pretty fine creatures with something between their legs that provided an almost Heavenly feeling, he bought a second hand playboy magazine from a street hustler. That magazine was his sanctuary for a long time until he finally got close to the real thing under that pier that one summer.

So he definitely had more embarrassing stories.

"Anyways, are you excited to see your parents?" He asked.

Olivia finally mustered up the courage to look at him after her revelation. And with a smile, she nodded. "Yeah. I am." She replied. "I lucked out in that area. Some people can barely stand to be in the same room with their parents for more than five minutes. But I get along just fine with mines." Then she added, "Though, my mom might give you a little bit of a hard time." She thought that the least she could do is give him a warning. Better he be prepared than walk into an ambush with Maya Pope cause God knows he will never live that down.

"Why?" Fitz asked, a little bit panicked. "Is it because I'm a guy?"

Olivia rolled her eyes at him. "No. Not because you're a guy." Then she caught herself thinking. Admittedly, him being a guy had everything to do with it but not in the sense that he might be inferring to. Her mother is not a man hater. "She thinks that we're sleeping together." She said barely above a whisper; hoping he wouldn't hear.

But when he slammed his feet on the breaks, nearly sending her flying through windshield, she knew he heard her.

"What?!" Fitz exclaimed. "Why would she think that? Did you tell her that we aren't? I don't want her to think that I'm taking advantage of you. Oh my God, she's gonna hate me. She's gonna think I'm scum. And your father might kill me in my sleep. Olivia!"

Olivia couldn't help the burst of laughter that ripped from her throat. He looked so pale and she knew she should feel horrible about it but for some reason all she could do was laugh.

"Stop laughing. That's not funny." Fitz pouted.

If anything, that made her laugh even harder. He was adorable. Leave it to her to find humor in this situation at his expense while he was freaking out.

"Jeez, calm down before you have a damn heart attack. It's not that serious." Olivia said, trying to calm him down after catching her breath. "You make it sound like it would be the worst thing in the world if we were in fact fucking."

"God, Olivia! Don't say that kind of shit." Fitz said. He could feel the heat rising in his cheeks.

 _Don't give me hope. My weak heart can't handle it._

"Why?" Olivia questioned with raised eyebrows. "Because it would be so bad?"

She was doing a piss-poor job at hiding the hurt expression in her eyes. And Fitz couldn't handle that.

"No, not because it would be so bad!" Fitz said, quickly feeling the need to reassure her. "Just... I... Liv-" This wasn't fair.

Watching him struggle to find the right words to say evaporated the small little dent he caused to Olivia's ego. "Look, don't get your panties in a twist." She teased, trying to lighten up the mood again. "And besides, we'd have to actually like each other for something like that to happen, but you're not my type and I totally hate you. So relax, okay?"

Eyes on the road, Fitz finally cracked a smile. "You're such a tease." He said. "Though, I can infer that I've heard somewhere that hate sex is the best. Ain't nothing like it."

Olivia choked. Her eyes wide with shock. Payback's a bitch after all. "I hate you!" She shoved Fitz's arm as he burst into a fit of laughter barely controllable. "You're the worst, did you know that?"

One hand on the steering wheel, Fitz reached out with the other one to pull her at his side. When she didn't push him away, he smiled as he planted a gentle kiss on her forehead. "You totally don't hate me."

Olivia didn't even have to see his face to know that he was smirking. "Keep telling that to yourself, buddy."

"I will." He said, kissing her hair this time.

Inside though, Olivia couldn't help but feel all warm and tingly. It was a feeling that she wasn't quite familiar with but she didn't hate it too much. So, she stayed in his arms, her head safely tucked in the space between his neck and collarbone and she listened as Hozier's powerful yet melancholy voice take her to church and warm it's way to her soul.

"Have you ever done that?" Olivia only meant to think it but what she thought somehow made it's way out of her mouth and there was no taking it back.

"Fireball?" Fitz groaned.

"Yes?" Olivia answered innocently as she lifted her head from his shoulder.

"What are you asking me exactly?" Fitz asked. He had an idea but he wanted to hear her say it.

She had no idea what she was asking him, did she? It should be noted that when it came to anything sexual, Fitzgerald Grant had very specific preferences. In other words, he was a man of many talents and that also translated in the bedroom with him. He lived the lifestyle of a very dominant man so vanilla sex didn't exactly do it for him. Sure it was satisfying but not as fulfilling as totally having control of somebody else's pleasure; being submitted to; being trusted enough to know that though his foreplay might be deliciously agonizing, sometimes even bordering on torturous, _the endgame was most definitely very rewarding_. He liked to explore, he liked to learn and he liked to give. _Some might even say he is very generous_. So really, she had no idea what she was asking him. If he were to tell her the truth about what made him lose his mind in the land of pleasure, she would probably run away from him for good.

"Have you ever had hate sex before? Rough sex...to be specific." Olivia figured there was no point in playing coy with him. Her tongue was loose and had already betray her. And besides, they were two grown adults. Surely, they could have a grownup conversation about this.

But Fitz wasn't having it. "Why?" He teased. "Are you interested in my merchandise?"

Olivia blinked at him, totally oblivious to his cruel pun until the words settled in her head, followed by the obvious way his eyes settled on his junk after he said what he said. "Oh my God!" She slapped her hand over her eyes, blushing fifty shades of embarrassment. "Didn't we just establish that we hated each other?"

 _"We?"_ Fitz frowned. "You established honey. And that was okay until you asked if I've had rough sex. So are you interested?"

 _Hell yes! Fuck yes. You can get it any day, any way, anywhere._ Those were just some of the things that some evil voice was echoing in her head but she was determined to ignore it. Ignore. Ignore. Ignore.

Olivia regretted asking. "Can you stop? Or at least pretend you're not enjoying this?" She begged of his smug grin.

She wasn't sure whether to slap it off or kiss it off.

 _Both would work._ Ignore. Ignore. Ignore.

"Why do you wanna know?" He stopped smirking and actually sounded genuine about it.

Olivia shrugged. "I don't know. Just curious I guess." She replied.

Fitz shook his head. Not totally sold. "That's not good enough." He said. "If I'm gonna tell you all about my wild sex escapades, it better be for something more than just your curiosity, _sweetheart_."

"Fine," Olivia groaned. Swallowing her pride, she said to hell with it. _Whatever._ "What if I told you, it was for scientific purposes?"

Fitz snapped his gaze at her, gasping and totally letting her know he read through her bullshit. "Oh my God!"

"What?" Olivia asked.

"You're mungry." Fitz replied.

"I'm what?" Never having heard of that word, Olivia was truly confused.

"Mungry!" Fitz shouted. "Scientific purposes bullshit, my ass. You're man hungry!"

If embarrassment could kill, Olivia should be dead by now. It was taking everything she had not to open the passenger's door and jump out of the moving vehicle. "You're the absolute worst! And that's not even a word." Absolutely mortified, she hid her face in her hands, wishing she could either melt in her chair or disappear into thin air.

"It is now." Fitz said, chuckling.

"Says who?" Olivia argued.

"Says me." Fitz replied. "How long has it been?" He asked, glancing at her.

"Oh my God!" She screamed in her hand, wishing the earth would swallow her whole. "I'm not telling you that."

Too ashamed to admit just hot long of a dry spell she's been having, she turned around in her seat and resumed to staring back outside the window before they started this stupid conversation.

"Mungry!"

"Shut up, Fitzgerald."

Frustrated, Olivia realized then that she really needed to get laid. Preferably soon before she went insane. It couldn't be healthy for any woman to go that long on a man-cation.

"Livvie-"

Olivia snapped. "I swear if you say mungry one more time, Fitzgerald..."

Fitz chuckled. It was way too easy to punch her buttons. This having been his very first road trip since he could even remember, he could definitely say he was having a blast.

"I won't." He said.

"I swear-" Olivia begin to make another empty threat but he grabbed her hand again and brought it to his lips.

"I won't tease you anymore." He promised.

"Good." Olivia pouted. "Because bullies aren't cute."

"I agree." Fitz nodded. "So how long again?"

"Fitzgerald!" Olivia roared through gritted teeth- letting him know she's really had enough.

He chuckled again. "Can't blame a guy for trying."

...

They were officially an hour into their trip and the fun was just getting started. What started out as an innocent game of two truths and a lie suddenly took a quick left turn and became this brutal freak show where neither was playing fair.

"I'm currently commando right now. I've kissed a girl before. I've never had oral sex."

Fitz scratched his head. "This is tough." He confessed.

He didn't wanna picture her naked underneath those short shorts she was wearing because if he closed his eyes long enough, he can almost see it and the image was way too vivid and getting an erection in front of her was not a situation he wanted to be in at this very moment. But then again, so was the second image of her kissing a girl. It was just too much. And as for the third one, he refused to believe that no guy has ever been down on her because that's just crazy talk. What man in their right mind wouldn't want to lave at her sweet little pot of honey? Who the heck...? Nope. Just no. He refused.

 _Shit! Think of a dead old lady naked on her kitchen floor._

Normally that image was an instant boner killer. But not today.

He's had dreams about this... about being between her legs and just pleasuring her selflessly for hours until she couldn't take no more. And now she would go and spit out this bullshit to him about never having had oral. That wasn't fair.

So he refused to guess her lie. She was telling all lies as far as he was concerned.

She's a damn liar.

"I don't wanna guess." He said.

"You have to. That's how the game works."

She was pushing him. And he was gonna break. He was too weak.

"The second one." He stiffened. "That's your lie. You've never kissed a girl before." Better he had that one fantasy crash. No hard feelings.

She screamed, making a loud, obnoxious buzzing sound that was almost deafening to him. "Wrong!" She said.

Fitz winced. Then his eyes widened, his ears turned cherry red. She said wrong. _Wrong!_ "You've kissed a girl before?!" He shouted.

She nodded. "Yep. Tongues and all. More like made out." She folded all her fingers in a claw and made them meet each other; her way of demonstrating kissing motions. In her mind, she was trying to disgust him but the tight grip forming in his pants said otherwise. "I think I even let her touch my boobs. I don't know. I was too drunk."

Fitz hit the steering wheel causing Olivia to chuckle.

"You've kissed a girl." He said again, still not believing his ears. "Where was I when that happened?"

Olivia rolled her eyes at him. "Pervert."

Then he started pouting again. Looking too damn adorable for words. "I don't wanna play this game anymore." He whined sounding like a little boy. "It's not fair."

 _"I don't wanna play this game anymore. It's not fair."_ Olivia mimicked him, smiling the whole time.

"Are you mimicking me?" Fitz asked.

 _"Are you mimicking me?"_ Olivia repeated.

Fitz shook his head. "I don't know who you're mimicking Ms. Parakeet but I don't sound like that." He said.

Olivia ignored his calling her a bird as what she assumed was supposed to be an insult and continued to tease him. "Oh you mean like a caveman?"

"No." Fitz chuckled. "I wouldn't feel offended if you made me sound like a caveman rather than a goddamn barbie doll."

The next thing he felt was a hot stinging pain in his right arm. It hurt.

"Damn it, Olivia!" He shouted. "Person driving here."

"That'll teach you not to be such a _stronzo_ next time." She said.

"I have to stop teaching you Italian." Fitz smirked. "But seriously, can you rub it? It stings!"

"You're such a big baby." Olivia laughed.

"I am." Fitz admitted. "Now please rub my arm. Make it better." He pouted.

Olivia caved after his little pout and batting lashes. They were something induced with magic and his little pout was truly irresistible and before she knew it, she was smoothly rubbing his arm where it sting, all the while smiling to herself because she couldn't understand how a big, strong man like him could be such a baby sometimes.

"So which one of the three was the lie?" Fitz asked.

Olivia shrugged at him. "Your guess was wrong so I suppose you'll never know."

"Fine." Fitz said. "I'm fine with not knowing."

And he was because if she told him, no matter which was the lie of the other two, one will remain true and still shake him up. If she was truly commando in his chair right now, he couldn't look at her for the rest of their trip. And if she'd never had oral, he was pretty sure he would pull over the road somewhere and make damn sure he feast on her like a starving animal. That or either he'd go insane fantasizing about being her first and wondering how she's never had it.

Either way, he was fucked.

But this very tiny, if not very idiotic part of him wanted the first one about her being commando to be her lie so that the second one could be her second truth because then, maybe, just maybe not totally a possibility but a sure probable maybe that he might one day get the chance to have her come undone on his tongue.

That totally, very idiotic part of him had hope.

It was foolish of him, he knew, but still, sometimes hope can make all of the differences.

"There's a seven-eleven in two miles. Can you stop so we can get snacks?" Olivia asked.

Fitz nodded. "Sure. Qualsiasi cosa tu voglia."

"Thanks. I'm suddenly craving nuts."

Fitz couldn't help it. "That's what she said!" He erupted loudly, soon followed by; "That fucking hurts, Olivia!"

"I clearly didn't hit you hard enough before that." Olivia rolled her eyes. "You're nasty. And no, I'm not rubbing it this time."

Fitz pouted, furiously rubbing his stinging arm. "It's all red!" He cried. "You're so abusive."

"Clearly you like it."

"I'm telling Mama Pope just how mean you've been to me." He said.

Olivia chuckled, very amused at his attempt to blackmail her. "You know what nobody likes, Fitzgerald?"

"What?" He continued pouting.

"A tattletale."

...

Two miles up, Fitz pulled up in the parking lot of a seven-eleven gas station convenient store. Keys in hands, he got out of the car and went to open the passenger's door for Olivia.

"Thank you." She said, smiling.

He hadn't stopped pouting yet. And he was pretty sure she was gonna leave him with bruises. "You're not forgiven." He replied.

Still, that didn't stop him from wrapping his arms around her waist as they walked in the store.

"Grab a cart." Fitz said when they got inside.

"Why?" Olivia asked. "We're not buying a lot of stuff. We're only getting one item."

"Then grab a basket." Fitz said.

In his experience, one item never really means one item. He wouldn't be surprised if they walked out of the store with a cart full.

"Fine." Olivia groaned.

And so they went shopping. First item that made it in the little red basket was a fruit bowl. As they continued down the aisles, Fitz came across a rack of popcorn clusters and threw a few bags in the basket. Next were potato chips and hot Cheetos.

"Are you done?"

"No. We need something to drink." Olivia pulled at his arms and dragged him to the fridges where the beverages were kept cool.

On sight, Fitz grabbed a yellow Gatorade as Olivia continue to browse all the fridges, looking for something specific. Then she tossed two large bottles of Fiji water in the almost full basket.

"Yes!" She exclaimed excitedly. "Naked!"

"Ma'am, we're in a store. I refuse to get naked with you." Fitz couldn't resist making her miserable. And the priceless look he got from her as an elderly lady passed them sent him doubling over with laughter.

"Stop it." Olivia said, a blush of embarrassment creeping on her cheeks.

"It is my right to refuse to get naked with you in public. It's inappropriate." He continued. "It's a violation of my body and I won't stand for it."

Olivia couldn't have scurried away from him fast enough. With a roll of her eyes, she turned around and walked away. "I hate you."

Fitz chuckled, following her with the basket in hand. Furiously, she tossed more stuff in the basket as they went along. Oreos, Twizzlers, a huge bag of M&M, fruit gummies, whip cream.

"What do we need whip cream for?!" Fitz shouted after her.

"Why do I care? You're paying for all of this." Olivia replied.

Fitz smirked. This was her letting him know that he can be an asshole but his wallet was gonna pay for it. It's a good thing he was employed. He shook his head when he noticed a full basket in his hand and to think they only came here for peanuts. He went to the peanut aisle and grabbed a jar of honey roasted peanuts then he went looking for her where she was waiting for him at the checkout counter.

As they waited for their items to be ringed up, Fitz pulled her against his chest and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Don't be mad at me." He whispered in her ear.

"Whatever. I'm not speaking with you."

"But I'm so cute." He pouted.

Not falling for it this time, Olivia rolled her eyes. "I don't care. You're an asshole."

"I am." Fitz said. "But you're my friend. Who else am I supposed to be an asshole to?"

Olivia smiled then. Shaking her head, she looked up at him, "You're such an idiot."

"Yes I am." Fitz agreed, if only to make her happy. "So forgive me."

"I'll think about it." Olivia replied.

"Okay." He could settle for that. There's no way she could stay mad at him through the rest of the trip.

When they finally got out of their own bubble, they looked up at the cashier who was smiling bashfully at them with a deep blush to her face.

"You guys are the cutest couple I've ever seen." She said.

Fitz smiled. But Olivia didn't think it was funny. First it was her mother who by the way hasn't even met Fitz but she already made up her mind about them sleeping together. Now it was a stranger who thought they made the cutest couple. What about them indicates that they were anything but friends?

But before Olivia could tell the girl there wasn't a chance in hell, Fitz beat her to it.

"Thank you." He replied. "I think so too."

After adding a tank full of gas to their snack purchase, Fitz fished out his wallet from his pocket for his debit card and paid their total. Then soon enough, they were back on the road.

"Why did you do that?"

Fitz smirked. He'd been waiting for her to say something about what that cashier said since they hopped back in the car. And after their ten minutes silence, he'd resigned to her not caring as much as he thought she would, but he knew better because he knew her and when something bothered her, she couldn't get comfortable until she got it off her chest.

"Do what?" Fitz replied.

"Tell that girl we were together." Olivia said.

"I didn't tell her that. She gave us a compliment and I simply agreed." Fitz explained. "Live a little, Olivia. It's not that big of a deal."

"Fine." She shrugged. "Do you want me to drive the rest of the way?"

Fitz shook his head, munching on a piece of Twizzlers. "Nope. Just sit here and be pretty."

For the first time since they climbed back in the car, she looked at him and smiled. "I feel special."

"Can you feed me please? I want some of that fruit thing you got."

"Okay." Olivia reached in the bag for the fruit bowl, a fork and the whip cream. Shaking the can as instructed, she squirt a good amount on top of the fruit before peeling off the plastic on the fork. "Open up."

Instantly, Fitz's mouth opened widely and Olivia fed him a forkful of fruit and whipped cream. "Thank you." He mumbled as he chewed.

"Mhmm..." She turned on the radio again and resumed to playing the mixtape. Uptown Funk blasted and Fitz watched with amusement as Olivia danced in her seat.

"Sing with me." She encouraged.

Fitz scoffed. "I'm not singing this ridiculous song." He replied.

"It's not ridiculous." Olivia said defensively. "It's a catchy song. You cannot _not_ sing it when it comes on."

"Ridiculous." Fitz argued.

"You're just a boring old man." Olivia sassed. "If you don't wanna join in my party, shut up."

Fitz rolled his eyes as he brought his hand to the radio, changing the song that was playing.

"Hey! What the hell? I was listening to that." Olivia yelled at him.

He ignore her and continued to skip over the tracks until he found the perfect song. Not a Bad Thing by Justin Timberlake sounded through the speakers and he listened as the intro started. Quietly tapping on the steering wheel to get into the rhythm, he began to silently mouth to the lyrics under his breath.

Albeit small as a whisper, Olivia was startled by his beautiful voice. She watched as his lips moved and listened to his faint voice sing such personal lyrics. She turned down the volume, almost drowning out Justin's voice so she could hear his. Figuring if she joined him in a duet, that would encourage him to sing louder. Before she knew it, she was opening her mouth in tune to the next verse:

 **Now how about I'd be the last voice you hear tonight?/ And every other night for the rest of the nights that there are/**

 _Every morning I just wanna see you staring back at me/'Cause I know that's a good place to start_

Fitz smiled, completely amazed by the amazing sound of her voice. Together he knew that they could make this moment an epiphany for them. So as the pre-chorus begin, he allowed his voice to grow louder.

 _I know people make promises all the time/Then they turn right around and break them/When someone cuts your heart open with a knife, now you're bleeding/Don't you know that I could be that guy to heal it over time/And I won't stop until you believe it/'Cause baby you're worth it_

Their voices merged together for the chorus and it was the most beautiful thing to Olivia's ears. Though still surprise about his vocal talent, she was even more shocked to find out how much she was enjoying being in the moment with him.

 _So don't act like it's a bad thing to fall in love with me/ 'Cause you might fuck around to find your dreams come true, with me_

Olivia shook her head at him, a smile still playing on her lips. He would choose to sing the more explicit version of this part instead of the clean one.

 **Spent all your time and your money just to find out that my love was free**

Together: So don't act like it's a bad thing to fall in love with me, me/It's not a bad thing to fall in love with me, me

Instead of ending with the last of the chorus, Fitz went back to the first verse just for her to hear the bits she missed and Olivia felt like she was about to turn into a puddle of chocolate as she realized that he was speaking those words to her for a reason. He wanted her to hear them come from his lips. And he wanted her to believe them.

 _Cause all I want from you is to see you tomorrow/And every tomorrow, maybe you'll let me borrow your heart/And is it too much to ask for every Sunday?/And while we're at it, throw in every other day to start_

While he started the bridge, Olivia went solo with the chorus, performing her own acapella with each snap of her finger. She smiled and swooned, grinned and blushed. A really pretty man was singing to her. _Oh dear._

She really wished they could have recorded this.

 _No I won't fill your mind/With broken promises and wasted time_ _/And if you fall, you'll always land right in these arms/These arms of mine_

 _So It's not a bad thing to fall in love with me_

"Maybe you're not such a boring old man after all." Olivia said.

Fitz winked at her. "Anytime pretty girl. Anytime."

...

It was another long hour and a half drive in mid-day traffic up as they continued up north but they survived. Now as they pulled into Olivia's parents' driveway, she couldn't feel happier. The cars parked on either side of the street told her that a lot of guest had already arrived and if not that, then it was the smell of patties and sausages grilling in her parent's backyard.

"Looks like we're a little bit late to the party." Fitz said as he came around to open Olivia's door.

"A queen is never late." She told him. "Come on."

Fitz had barely gotten their bags from the back of the truck before she was tugging at his arm. Olivia entertained going through the back since that's where everybody else currently was but she had a lot of family that she hasn't seen in a while and she wanted to look more presentable when she saw them so instead, she rang the bell, hoping that someone would hear her over the loud blaring stereo.

A few minutes later, Mrs. Robinson came to open the door for them. Olivia almost didn't recognize her without her apron on. She's known Mrs. Robinson her whole life and she's never seen the woman look so formal and beautiful. She was in her sixties but you'd never guess it because she had the most beautiful dark brown skin that glowed with the youth of a woman half her age. Her suave salt and pepper hair was finally let down out of it's usual pin up style and they were left loose in long, beautiful curls. She wore a very pale blue dress with white open toe sandals. For a moment, Olivia thought that she was going to burst into tears because Mrs. Robinson was reminding her so much of her Nana Giselle.

"Mi sweet gyal!" Mrs. Robinson greeted excitedly as she pulled Olivia into a hug.

Though she has lived in the states for over forty years now, her Caribbean accent was still very thick. Olivia thought that it was pretty cool that her Jamaican accent remained when most people would've lost it by now.

"And wo ah dis handsome man yuh bring home?" Her kind eyes wandered up and down Fitz's tall frame.

Olivia was about to make the introduction but Fitz beat her to it. Always a charming gentleman, he offered Mrs. Robinson his most panty-dropping smile before extending his hand to her. "Fitzgerald Grant. Very nice to meet you."

Mrs. Robinson took his hand and he brought hers to his lips. Talk about laying on the charm thick. If Olivia didn't know better and that Mrs. Robinson was still very much in love with her husband of forty odd years, she'd say that she'd fallen under the spell of the panty-dropper.

"He's a ladies' man, hunh?" Mrs. Robinson concurred. Turning to Olivia, she smiled. "Mi laik him. Him gat manners."

Olivia shrugged as they were finally let into the house. Maybe she didn't have to watch out for him after all. He got past Mrs. Robinson, she was confident that Fitz could fend for himself against her mother and her dad.

"Is it okay if I get a quick change of clothes before I join the party?" Olivia asked of Mrs. Robinson.

The elder woman nodded. "But hurry. Yuh need to get someting to eat."

"Yes, ma'am." Olivia agreed.

Since he was still carrying their bags, Fitz thought that he could also be excused but apparently, the same orders Olivia got didn't apply to him also because when he went to make a beeline for the stairs like Olivia, he was stopped before he could even get a foot on the second step.

"You're coming wid mi." Mrs. Robinson told him. "We need ah man pon de grill."

Fitz looked at Olivia out the corner of his eyes for help. This wasn't the plan. They were supposed to face the Pope and Lewis crowd together as a team. Their plan didn't involve him thrown to the wolves by himself while she powdered her nose for twenty minutes.

"Smile, Grant. She likes you." Olivia winked before grabbing their bags from his hands and running up the stairs.

888

Olivia was upstairs in her childhood bedroom changing for the barbecue. Somehow, being in this room brought back so many memories of her childhood, most of them very good. You see, her parents didn't live in the Hampton's. She grew up in the heart of New York City but as a kid, she used to travel a lot during vacation and she can remember spending a lot of her time here in this house. She was very happy when her parents decided to retire here instead of halfway across the world. Originally, the plan was to retire somewhere in Europe or the south but apparently, the thought of being far away from her terrified them as much as it terrified her. She didn't know what she's do without her parents around to keep her grounded.

She was just about done and excitement was coursing through her veins. Even over the blasting music, she could hear a lot of laughter through her windows and it warmed her heart to know that it was coming from her closest friends and family. She couldn't wait to join him. Giving herself a once over in the mirror, she placed her final accessory on top of her head. A large white sun hat.

...

When Olivia opened the back door that led to the backyard, a huge sense of welcome rushed over her as she watched her people come together all in the same habitat to enjoy a family day. Right off the bat, she could make out some familiar faces that she sadly hasn't had the chance to see in a very long. Most of her aunts and uncles were in attendance. Some of her cousins and their young children were also of presence. Old neighbors and family friends that she's forgotten all about took the time to make an appearance also. Her backyard was so filled with people and it seemed like they were all having a good time. Some were in groups chatting and catching up while others were simply eating, dancing, drinking or in the children's case, wrecking some kind of havoc in her mother's beloved garden. There was so much organic happiness around and it felt truly genuine. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so consumed with good around her.

Instantly or rather subconsciously, her eyes looked for Fitz and Olivia gasped out loud to herself when she found him manhandling the grill with her father. Even stranger, they were laughing and drinking manly beverages like old pals. _They were bonding._

"Smooth son of a bitch." She muttered.

Then she spotted her mother, the Queen of the party looking as beautiful and classy as ever in her white regalia. She had a glow about her that Olivia hasn't seen in a very long time and she guessed that it had a lot to do with being surrounded by so many familiar faces. Her mother like herself valued family a lot. It was something that ran in the Lewis blood. And now more than ever, she missed her Nana so much. But Olivia knew that she was with them in spirit and that wherever she was at the moment, she was smiling a damn proud smile down at them.

"Livia honey!" Maya screeched excitedly as she reached her daughter. "Bisou." She puckered up and kissed both sides of her daughter's face. "You look absolutely beautiful honey."

Oh, did we not go over what Olivia was wearing yet? Sorry.

Well, she was looking particularly splendid in a Kate Spade black and white crisscross-knotted bow back pleated dress that stopped just short of her knees. Her long legs left much to the imagination in a sexy navy blue platform pump with gold shackles and a six inch stiletto. Due to the summer heat, she thought it was best to keep her makeup minimal and simple. So a few coats of mascara and a melodious wine lipstick did the trick. Her silky hair hung on her shoulders with a white sun hat on top.

Simple, beautiful and classy. Like mother like daughter.

"Thanks mom." Olivia smiled. "But don't worry though, you still got it."

Her mother chuckled as she wound their arms together. "Let's go get you something to drink."

 _That's code for: we need to talk._ And Olivia had a feeling about what exactly they were going to discuss. Or rather who as she met Fitz's oceanic blue eyes across the yard.

On her way through, she greeted a few aunts and uncles, gushed with a few cousins over fashion before her mother found a working waiter with a tray of rose champagne going around.

"So..." Her mother prompted.

Olivia sipped on her delicious beverage with oblivion. "So?"

"Why didn't you tell me he was so drop-dead gorgeous!" Her mother whispered. "You could've warned an old ladies's ovaries."

Olivia's head snapped and she nearly choked on her drink. "MOTHER!" She exclaimed. She must've been really loud because a few heads snapped back and they all raised their eyebrows at her. "We're fine." Olivia said. "Nothing unusual here. Just a daughter, having a _very inappropriate_ conversation with a mother who's got no chill or whatsoever." She informed. People shrugged and went back to mind their own. This time, Olivia made sure she was quieter when she went back to scolding her mother. "Your ovaries? Seriously, have you no shame woman? What is wrong with you?" She whispered.

"Oh relax!" Maya smirked. "He's the prettiest frog you've brought to meet us. I'm allowed to appreciate."

And as always, Fitz had impeccable timing because he chose then to walk towards them, spotting his most charming smile. "I see where you got your looks from, Livvie."

Olivia rolled her eyes. "Hi, Ace."

"Hey Fireball." He leaned in and placed a kiss on her forehead.

Maya couldn't help but be in awe of them. She's only known Fitz for only about an hour but in the two seconds that she's seen him interact with her daughter, Maya was sold. Yes, Fitz was very handsome, in fact he might be one of the most beautiful creature of God she's encountered in her lifetime but until now, none of it really mattered to her. Even annoyed, Maya could pinpoint the exact moment something shifted in Olivia and it was when Fitz called her Fireball and kissed her forehead. To say that she was intrigued about the story behind Ace and Fireball would be an understatement but she knew she'd pry it out of her daughter before she left back for the city. For now, she excused herself, opting to watch the two from afar for a better understanding of what was between them. One thing was for sure though, Maya knew that whatever it is that was ongoing with them was going to last for a very long time and she couldn't wait to witness its growth.

"You kids are gonna have to excuse me." Maya smiled. "My husband looks like he's two seconds from having a heart attack with those rugrats running wild around him over there."

Before she left, Fitz grabbed her hand and kissed it gently. "Later Maya."

 _MAYA! He's on first name basis with my mother? The same woman who made Edison call her Mrs. Pope for two whole years was on first name basis with Fitz who's only been here for an hour?_ Olivia's eyes widen and her jaw went slack. _Was he calling my dad Dominic now too?_

Exactly how much has she missed in the past half hour that she was getting ready?

"Maya?" Olivia asked after her mom left.

Fitz shrugged. "She insisted." He replied. "You looked like you needed a little bit of rescuing for a while there."

"My hero." Olivia said sarcastically.

"Do you need a drink?" Fitz asked. "You look like you need a drink."

"My mother just mentioned you and her ovaries in the same sentence. I think I need more than just _a_ drink." Olivia told him.

Fitz arched his eyebrows. "Come again?"

Olivia shook her head. "Don't ask." She replied. "How do I look?"

She watched as Fitz gave a long once-over, from head to toe and back again before he licked his moist tongue over his lips and nodded.

"You look good." He replied.

"Great. Now let's go mingle." Olivia grabbed his arms and begin tugging at his arm again. Fitz could only follow.

"Your ass looks good too." He added.

When Olivia looked back at him, he was smirking. "Pervert."

...

Sometime between all the mingling, they lost each other again.

While Olivia was doing surveillance to make sure none of the kids went beyond the safety end of the pool with one of her cousins, Fitz was across the yard talking to one of her uncles. Her favorite uncle.

"Uncle Harry and aunt Gina are here." Olivia said more to herself than her cousin Kemiline.

"Yeah. They got here about ten minutes ago." Kemiline said.

"So that means Harrison is here?"

Kemiline shrugged. "He should be." She replied. "Where are you going?"

"To find him." Olivia shouted over her shoulders.

Growing up, of all her many cousins, Olivia had always gotten along better with Harrison. Well, she could say that but if you ask Harrison, he was tortured by Olivia during his whole entire childhood all because he made the mistake of coming to the world one month later than she did. She's been making his life a living hell since he could even remember, starting with his toys as a little boy. And then as they grew older together, she only found more ways to torture him, starting with stealing his stash of weed and flushing it down the toilet. Pure evil!

Olivia exited through the back door of the yard and ended up in the parking lot. It was quiet as hell on the street, except for the two people she could hear going at it in the back of a black SUV. She shook her head with humor. "Of course it's him." She mumbled.

Remember that Olivia's job as an older cousin is to make his life miserable. Always has and always will be so it was to be expected for her to go and ruin what little fun Harrison was indulging in at the very moment.

Her heels clicked on the hard pavement until she was standing in front of the shaking car. Olivia guessed she should feel grateful that the windows were tainted because her ears didn't get much of the courtesy that her eyes had gotten. She could hear them and they were loud!

"Hey asshole!" She shouted, banging repeatedly on the tinted windows.

They were still going at it. Moaning and groaning and fucking. _Loudly._

Obviously banging on the windows didn't help so Olivia went around the car and banged on the hood of the car which caused the alarm to go off. "Harrison Jr. Lewis-Wright!"

"SHIT!" She heard Harrison curse followed by the shuffle of clothing.

"YOU'RE NASTY!" Olivia yelled. "Last time I checked, public lewdness was still a punishable offence."

Harrison lowered a window about half way and Olivia came around that side. In the back of the SUV she could make out a girl quickly trying to get dressed and clean up as best she could for a person who was getting the life fucked out of her seconds earlier.

"Missed me, babe?" Olivia asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

"Where the hell did you come from?!" Harrison barked.

"You have exactly five minutes to get out of this car before I call everyone from the party to come catch you with your pants around your ankles." Olivia smirked mischievously.

...

When Harrison finally joined his family's cookout, he was seething. He wanted his cousin's head on a silver platter. His girlfriend wanted to leave the party because she was too embarrassed to face anybody in his family because his cousin had heard them going at it like jack rabbits in the back of his car.

He finally reached Olivia and she was talking to some white dude he's never seen before as if she didn't just ruin his fun a few minutes ago.

"Fitz, this is my cousin Harry." Olivia smiled upon seeing him.

Completely disregarding Fitz's presence, Harrison seethed, "Don't call me that!"

"You clean up nice for someone who was having a quick-"

"OLIVIA!" Harrison yelled.

"Oh relax." Olivia chuckled as she made the shadow of a girl standing behind him. She tried to get a better view of her face but the girl looked pretty determined on not being seen which Olivia thought was hilarious by the way since she's already heard worse out of her than she would care to admit. "You know I hate it when you seethe like that. Last time you worked yourself to an asthma attack, I couldn't come over to aunt Arianne's for a whole month so let's try to not do that again please?"

Harrison shook his head and gripped tighter at his girlfriend's hand. "I don't like you." He said.

"Nothing I haven't heard before." Olivia said dismissively. "Are you gonna introduce me to your freaky _little friend_?" She took a side-step and this time, Olivia was able to make out a pair of grey eyes. "You don't have to hide, girl." Liv chuckled. "I don't bite. At least not as hard as you probably do. I promise."

Both Fitz and Olivia thought this very awkward moment was hilarious but apparently Harrison didn't because he closed his eyes and started counting from ten backwards. Finally on her own will, the girl behind him showed her face and to say that she was beautiful was an understatement. But of course she had to be beautiful to be on Harrison radar. The only reason why Olivia gave Harrison so much shit is because he's a serial womanizer but for some reason he was acting weird when it came to this girl. He was being protective. It's something she's never seen before.

Harrison must've sensed that Olivia was onto him because right then, he started giving her a pleading look. One that he gave her when he didn't want her to earn him an ass whooping from aunt Arianne when they were younger. Hell even to this day. The look that said, _"don't fuck this up for me. Please."_

 _I'll be damned_. Olivia thought.

She reciprocated Harrison's look. One that said she was gonna play nice.

"I'm Olivia." She offered a friendly hand to the brunette bombshell.

When the brunette spoke, she had an English accent and that's when Olivia knew what got Harrison trapped in the first place. She was his ideal girl.

"I'm Celery."

Olivia had been sipping on another rose and she spilled the liquid right back in the glass when she started choking. Fitz started pounding her back gently as he fought as hard as he could to keep from bursting into laughter himself. When he agreed to come on this trip with Olivia, he had no idea that he was in for such a treat.

"Come again?" Olivia asked when she finally managed to stop choking.

Harrison on the other hand looked like he wanted the earth to open wide and swallow him whole. His girlfriend on the other hand, well, she didn't find any of his hilarious.

"Okay. My apologies." Olivia said sincerely. "Can I call you Cece?"

"Sure." The brunette nodded.

"Okay. Good." Olivia smiled. "Let's go get you a drink so we can start getting friendly."

 _That_ terrified Harrison more than anything. He knew he'd never forgive Olivia if she fucked this up for him. He really likes Celery. She's different. She's good for him and he's never felt about anybody else the way he feels about her.

He was reluctant to let go of Celery's hand but she gave his hand a squeeze and his lips a peck. It was her way of silently asking him to trust her to look out for herself. So he let her go but not before slicing his fingers around his throat in a deadly motion to Olivia. And to that, she threw him the middle finger.

Now left alone with Fitz, Harrison looked up at the much taller man and puffed his chest. He'd never admit it to anyone because Olivia was a pain in his ass, but he cared and in every sense of the word he was kind of the little overprotective brother Olivia never had and as a result, he took the responsibility that came with that title very seriously.

"So..." He begin staring Fitz down hoping to intimidate him. But Fitz wasn't buying into his act. Instead, he was probably the most laid back guy Harrison's ever met. With his hands in his pocket, he stood there just waiting for Harrison to say something worth listening to. "Unless I'm hugely mistaken, you're not Edison."

That finally got Fitz's attention. He's been meaning to learn more about that cheating asshole. "No. I am not."

And so those two left too to go get a glass of manly liquor so they could begin on getting more acquainted with each other.

...

Olivia never thought she would see the day when Harrison actually found a good girl but then again, there was a first time for everything. In the past twenty minutes that she's sat in her parent's living room drinking martinis with Cece, Olivia's learned that the girl was damn near perfect. She seems like she comes from a great family. Grew up in London and came to the US when she got accepted into Harvard Law. Now she's twenty three years old working at one of the biggest law firms in Manhattan. She's also six months away from making partner at that firm from what Olivia's gathered.

Olivia found that she liked the girl just fine after getting an understanding of her. But she was sold on Cece being perfect for Harrison when the two found a common ground. Shoes and wine. Now, that was a woman worth being friends with. On their third glass of martini, they started chatting about everything from the greatest wine they've ever tasted to the latest pair of Miu Miu in their closet.

"You know, I have a friend who's been hounding me to make an appearance at fashion week-" Olivia had barely gotten the words out before Cece was squealing with excitement. At last. A girl after her own heart.

"If I can score a few tickets, do you maybe wanna come?" Olivia asked smilingly.

"Are you serious?" Cece replied.

Olivia nodded. "It'd be nice to go with somebody who gets all the hype of the fashion." She said.

God knows Abby doesn't. The redhead doesn't have a girly bone in her body when it came to fashion. She appreciates shoes and pretty clothes just like the next girl but that's as far as she went. She doesn't spend her time obsessing about Chanel bags or Christian Louboutin.

"Oh my God, yes!" Cece exclaimed. Then she smiled, "You know, contrary to what Harrison says, you're quite nice."

"Thank you." Olivia smiled back.

Just then, they heard the front door bell start to ring incessantly. Olivia frowned as she placed her martini glass on the tea table.

"Excuse me for a second." She said to Cece.

She had barely gotten up from the couch when loud banging joined the sound of the doorbell.

"I know this house is private property and I also know that my parents doesn't owe IRS dick so whoever you are, hold the fuck on!" Olivia yelled. Then she got to the door and flew it open only to become ten times enraged than she had started to feel when the banging on the door started. "Edison?"

"Hey, honey." Edison greeted with a lopsided grin.

Olivia turned back to make sure Cece was still in the living room and she was met by a puzzling look from the girl.

"Who is that?" Cece mouthed.

"My ex." Olivia mouthed back.

"Should I go get someone?" Cece asked.

Olivia shook her head. "I can handle him."

"Who's your friend?" Edison tried to poke his head in through the house but Olivia's feet were rooted to the front door and there was no way for him to get past her.

"None of your business." Olivia replied. "What are you doing here, Edison?"

"I came to see you, baby." He slurred. "Are you not gonna let me in?"

Olivia looked at him, squinting. He was drunk, she knew that much for sure. The smell of his skin and breath reeked of whiskey. That made Olivia's mind up instantly.

"No. You're not staying here." She told him seriously.

"Now, that's no way to talk to your boyfriend, honey." Edison said. That was before he kicked the door wide with the force of his foot and pushed through Olivia at the front door.

Olivia stumbled back on her six inch heels but fortunately didn't make the trip down on her ass thanks to a wall. She blinked for one second to get past her state of shock and to gather herself together but apparently, one second was all it took because in a flash, Edison was pressing her up against a wall and trying to kiss her with his nasty breath.

Adrenaline kicked in and Olivia shoved him hard, sending him stumbling off his feet and onto the floor on his ass. Olivia then looked at Cece and the girl nodded back at her. A little backup would probably do her a lot of good right about now.

He started laughing. Obnoxiously loud and hysterically, most likely a side effect of his drunk state. As Olivia looked down at him, she couldn't even see a hint of the man she used to think she was in love with. He was nowhere to be found. He'd gained weight, grew his hair out and a ridiculous beard. Sitting on the floor of her parent's living room, she saw a man who looked lost and unwell. She saw a man who let himself go down a dark road and didn't know how to find his way back. And then suddenly, it hit her: The drinking. Alcoholism ran deep in Edison's bloodline. His grandfather was a drunk. When he was just eight years old, his own father succumbed to the bottle and walked out on him and his mother, never to be seen again. She remembered how much Edison used to tell her he hated his father and that his worse fear was of becoming the man that his father was or is. Now it saddened Olivia that he was gonna look into the mirror one day and see his father's reflection staring back at him because he was on the fast lane of making his worse nightmare come true. The devil was plotting to snatch him and if he didn't stop before it was too late, there was no hope for him.

Just when she felt herself starting to feel bad for him, Edison stood up on his feet and was on her again at the same speed as before. This time, she couldn't shove him because he had her pinned good on the wall with her hands clasped tightly on his and his weight pressed on her.

"Let me go, Edison." She said.

Olivia's heart was racing and for the first time in her life, she found herself actually scared of a man. She spent two years with Edison but she's never been introduced to this version of him. She didn't know him pissed drunk and angry like this. She had no idea what he could do to her in the state that he was in and it was the most terrifying thing to Olivia.

"Let you go where, hunh?" Edison whispered. "You left me once already. I'm not letting you leave again."

Olivia moved her head to the side so her lips wouldn't be within his reach. "I left for good reasons, Edison."

"YOU DIDN'T LET ME EXPLAIN!" He slammed a hand over her head which caused Olivia to jump up with fear.

Before, she was doing a good job at hiding her fears from him, but this time, it showed and he saw it in her eyes. At that, he softened and dragged a lone finger down the slope of her jaw.

"You're scared." He said, almost fascinated by that aspect. "I won't hurt you, Olivia."

Olivia swallowed hard. _Cece where are you?_ She thought impatiently. "Why are you here, Edison?" She asked.

"I'm here for you, Liv." He answered with an almost childlike smile that didn't reach his eyes. "I'm here to fix us. I'm here to get you back, honey."

Olivia cringed, a cold shiver running down her spine. How had she picked so wrongly this time? There was no fixing them, there was no getting her back. And it wasn't even because he cheated. No. It was because Olivia didn't see a soul in him. Olivia couldn't tell when exactly Edison picked up the bottle but judging by the shape he was in, if she was gonna guess, she'd have to say he started a few weeks ago. But time didn't make a difference for someone with the blood of an addict running through his veins, now did it? He'd already pumped bottles of that poison into his veins and his system was drinking at it like an oasis.

Just then, out of the corner of her eyes, Olivia could see both Fitz and Harrison running through the backyard's door into the living room with Cece hot on their heels. She almost gasped out in relief but that would've spooked Edison.

"I'm sorry." Olivia mumbled.

"Sorry?" Edison arched his eyebrows. "Sorry for what?" He asked.

"This..." She managed to twist in his arm just enough to create some space between them before slamming the sharp bottom of her heels hard on his foot.

Edison jumped, a scream of agony escaping his lips as the pain registered. "You bitch!" He threw his hand violently and the back of his hand met Olivia's left cheek before he felt two huge hands grab the back of his shirt and toss him against a wall. Hard.

Olivia was too in shock to follow what happened next after Harrison threw Edison against the wall. She heard loud grunting and punching but her mind just couldn't catch up. All she could feel was the burning feeling on her left cheek. He hit her. In the face.

"Let's get you some ice, honey." She felt Cece's arms around her shoulder guiding her to the couch.

"Is that who you're fucking now?!" She heard Edison shout after her.

She turned her head back just in time to see the blow Fitz delivered to his throat, followed by the one Harrison delivered to his stomach. They were roughing him up badly and not a part of her was registering any of it. She was shut down. Mute.

"This isn't over, Olivia!" He grunted.

"You stay away from my cousin, you understand me?" Harrison slapped him across the face. "If you ever go near her again and I hear about it, I will find you and I will turn you into a female."

"You always did have a sense of humor." Edison chuckled exhaustingly. Blood was squirting out of his nose and drooling from his mouth. Then one last time punch from Fitz over the head put him out of his misery, and out cold.

"Get him out of here." Fitz spoke, his eyes cold and his tone eerily as cold and empty.

Harrison nodded and fished his cell phone out of his pocket to call for a cab. As the phone rang in his ear, he begin to dispose of his bloody mauve dress shirt. And to make sure nobody could get in the house through the back door, he fastened the locks.

...

Olivia sat facing the television in the living room with an ice pack over her face and Cece's comforting arms around her shoulder. She was still shut down but all of the sudden, this claustrophobic feeling started consuming her and she couldn't breathe. She dropped the ice pack on the tea table and started making work of removing her high heels. Once that was done, she abruptly stood up from the couch to look for Fitz.

He wasn't far. He was leaning against a wall with bruised knuckles and a pissed off look on his brows. Olivia wondered why he wasn't hovering over her at the moment and then she realized that it was because he knew her and that she wouldn't want to be coddled. She's want space to herself. But she also gathered that it was because maybe he was just as pissed off as she was and needed some space to himself too.

"Harrison..." She called.

He turned around and in seconds he was next to her. "What is it, Liv?"

"This stays in between the four of us, okay?" She demanded.

Harrison begin frowning, a sign that said he didn't think it was a good idea to keep this from her parents. They might not have to tell her mom but he thought that uncle Dominic deserved to know what happened. But Olivia wasn't having it.

 _"This stays between us."_ She said through gritted teeth.

For whatever reason that Harrison couldn't understand, she was determined on keeping this a secret for everybody else who didn't know what happened in this very living room and her tone said that she wasn't fucking around.

"Okay." He agreed against his better judgement. "This stays between us."

"On Nana's grave." Olivia said.

FUCK! Now he definitely couldn't tell nobody.

"I don't like this Liv." He complained.

Olivia shrugged. She didn't care what he liked at the moment. All she knows is that she didn't want her business to become breaking news in the Pope household. If her mom finds out, she's never leaving the Hampton's but if her dad finds out, that's a whole other story. She didn't even want to begin to guess the many ways her father would kill Edison. She wanted to put this whole thing behind her.

"Say it." She demanded.

Harrison shook his head. They're so gonna go to hell, swearing on a dead woman's grave like that for horrible shit like this. _He didn't like this, not one bit!_

"On Nana's grave." He pledged.

Olivia nodded then looked up at Fitz. His face told her he didn't like her decision but he wasn't going to fight her on it at the moment. This was one of the things she liked about him... he knew when to speak up and when to mind his own.

"Do you have your keys on you?" She asked him.

Fitz nodded. "Yeah." He replied.

Then without speaking, she grabbed the ice pack on the tea table and headed for the door without taking a second glance at Edison's lifeless body on the floor.

Fitz followed after her but not before barking one last order at Harrison. _"Take care of him or I will."_

And for some reason, Harrison didn't think the man meant just a cab ride back to Manhattan.

* * *

 _Apparently the document was too big and wouldn't let me update the whole chapter all at once. Rest is coming soon._


	6. Chapter 6

Minutes blurred into hours as they drove seamlessly passed various landscapes of lush green. The hot summer breeze tasted almost delightfully salty and provided an equal sense of peace to Olivia as they continued down the road in silence, soaking up the view ahead. The sound of the radio playing softly in the background is almost inaudible to hearing, as the lyrics are all gone to the wind. But more than anything, all of this: the breathtaking glow of the sun losing it's bright golden complexion as it dips behind the horizon, the voluminous sound of the wind whooshing at forty five miles an hour and the sight of nature in all it's glory- they all had one purpose and one thing in common only. They were all a much too welcomed and desired distraction for Olivia. They offered her a sense of release from the swimming pool of recent events that kept playing in her head over and over again like a broken record.

Much too soon, they reached their destination and Olivia is brought back to the present when she felt Fitz's hands reaching for her own.

"We're here." He said.

Here was the beach and slumbering in it's blue-grey robe was the majestic ocean. The brisk summer breeze washed over Olivia, hitting her skin with a fading resilience, releasing an unknowing secret in the air. She watched almost blissfully as the waves of the ocean meet the silver-warm sand in fleeting glances. In long cleansing breaths, Olivia admired the two, passing messages to each other in secret as if in a forbidden affair. The wistful sound of waves splashing against the rocks coupled with the screaming of seagulls wrote symphonies and released the tunes into the summer heat as a selfless gift. Looking back at Fitz, Olivia's heart soared. She didn't know how he knew, but this is exactly where she needed to be right now.

"Come here." Fitz extended his hand in offering and without hesitation, Olivia took it. Fingers entwined, he tucked her at his side as they begin to walk, in search of the perfect spot to just relax.

They still don't talk about any of it when they found the perfect spot in the shades under a tree. Instead, they silently sat and watched an interesting, ongoing volleyball game being played by a few college students. Olivia sighed when she felt Fitz's lips grazing the crown of her head. She knew it was his way of being there for her without pushing her.

"I'm okay." She finally offered.

She though he deserved at least that.

Fitz nodded. "I know."

Olivia bent her head back against his chest to look up into his eyes and for the first time in a few hours, a smile graced her lips. Albeit small, it was something and it brought a lightness to Fitz's heart.

"How's that?" Olivia asked.

Fitz shrugged, a grin forming on his lips too. "Cause I'm okay too."

"You're so full of shit." Olivia teased.

Gasping dramatically, Fitz poked her side. She was definitely in a better mood now. "Am not." He argued.

"Then how come I can hear you thinking of murder?" Olivia asked.

She wasn't too far fetched about that. Fitz was ready to tear up into Edison and wipe the floor with his remains. The asshole had hurt her… more than once both emotionally and physically and the knowledge of that pain was enough to make Fitzgerald see red. He was glad that he'd chosen to come to the beach because being able to take a step back from it all and breathing a breath of fresh air was as much for him as it was for Olivia too because there was no guarantee that Fitz wouldn't have killed Edison back there if Harrison hadn't been there also. He would have killed Edison in a heartbeat. Well maybe not in a heartbeat. He'd very much enjoy delivering him a slow, painful death- drag the bastard's last final moments as much as possible and watch him suffer. In Fitz's book, that was the only way to redemption for men life Edison.

"Livvie…"

"It's okay, Ace." Olivia reassured him. "I mean it's somewhat my fault." She began.

Fitz shook his head. "Stop."

He wouldn't let her do this. He wouldn't let her blame herself for this.

"I mean… how could I have chosen so wrong this time?" Olivia continued on, even with his protest and Fitz could clearly see that although, she was trying to be fine, she wasn't. She'd come here to the Hampton for a good time and to visit her parents and somehow, it all turned into a shit show.

"Olivia, listen to me." Turning her around, to face him, Fitz leveled with her, his eyes staring into her soul and when he spoke to her again, his voice was firm. "I don't wanna hear you say that any of this is your fault." Olivia glanced down and he cupped her face in his hands to get her attention back. "Look at me." Fitz demanded. It took a few seconds but she did look back into his eyes. _"People make their choices and it's not your place to take the burden of others on your shoulders._ What Edison did today is on him and Olivia Pope, I swear to God, I'm not gonna sit here and let you blame yourself for that sorry son of a bitch. You hear me?"

Smiling at him, Olivia nodded. "I hear you." She said.

"Good. So cut it out, okay?"

"Okay." Olivia agreed.

"Come on." Fitz stood up and beat the sand off his shorts before offering Olivia a helping hand up. "Let's go for a walk."

They walked around the shore of the beach and got their feet wet in passing of the waves washing up the sand. He told her a few corny jokes and even got her to laugh once or twice. When they returned back to their tree much later, the sun was long gone, dipped behind the horizon and the sky was taking up a darker shade. A lot of people were still around. It seemed that a beach party was ongoing because a bonfire lit up as high as the sky and a bunch of half naked, drunk college kids took turns making s'mores while drinking cheap beer from plastic red cups like the amateurs they were.

"Wanna get some ice cream?" Fitz asked.

Olivia nodded all too eagerly.

They came back with hands full. Olivia carried their slices of pizza and more ice for her face. Fitz trailed behind her with the sundae boats he'd gotten them. They sat back down under their tree just in time to watch the drunk college kids start playing with cheap explosives.

Though blazing loud, the fireworks were beautiful. Olivia listened to the roaring sound of excitement from children perched on their parent's shoulders as the sky bled the radiant flames of red, white and silver. Patriot colors. Viva America! Soon, the sky was illuminated with more colors and the sounds of the explosives were becoming almost deafening but Olivia didn't mind it as she ate her pizza. She ended up eating most of Fitz's ice cream because she thought it tasted better than hers. He'd gone with vanilla while she had chosen strawberry, not wanting to be plain. Still he didn't mind because it made her happy in the end. It's all Fitz really cared about when it comes to her. In whatever form that happiness was presented, even if it cost him his favorite indulgence.

"Let me see." Fitz lifted the ice pack she held against her cheek and examined the bruise.

The bruising was a pale blue but the swelling had gone down considerably. Smiling, he leaned in and placed a kiss on her cheek. "You look kind of badass." He said.

Enough time had passed for them to kind of joke about it.

Olivia chuckled. "You're an idiot." She told him.

"And you're still pretty damn cute." He kissed her cheek again before Olivia settled against his chest again to watch the fireworks.

They were real pretty.

888

By the time they'd gotten back to Olivia's parents, the barbecue had long come to an end. Most people made their exit in fashion with leftovers and the promise to see each other again soon even though the majority had no intent on keeping that promise.

Now the only two left were Olivia's mom and dad after Mrs. Robinson and her husband called it an early night. Through the glass door that led to the backyard, Olivia stood and watched as the most beautiful scene unfold before her very eyes and instantly, tears filled up behind her orbs as an overwhelming feeling of joy washed over her, causing her heart to swell up, almost ready to burst out of her chest.

After more than two decades of marriage, seeing her parents still so very much in love with each other was enough to bring Olivia to her knees and thank God for giving her such great examples to look up to. Her parents were dancing in their garden underneath the stars and silver moonlight, looking and smiling at each other like they've known each other their whole lives, but yet, they still managed to hold that glow in their eyes as if they were just meeting for the first time again and getting to know each other. She had the perfect example of what love is suppose to look like and yet, for some reason, she couldn't seem to quite get it right for herself, if her records of past relationships and more recent ones were any indications to follow by.

Bitter sweetly enough, in that moment, Olivia found herself recalling the night she met Fitz. Much of their conversation that night on his bed still lingered in her mind from time to time. She had asked him that night if he believed that the once-in-a-lifetime kind of love could really exist between two people and she remembered his honest response to that question even as drunk and pitiful as she was then.

 _"I don't know, fireball." He'd said. "But I like to believe that it does."_

And now, looking at her father serenating her mother with his smooth voice and swaying her in his arms- no doubt still very much in love with her as the day they laid eyes on each other, Olivia knew that, that once-in-a-lifetime kind of love does truly exist. She might act cynical and seem indifferent to the idea at times, but that was only a mask to cover up the hurt she's suffered while on the quest for that same feeling. At times, she felt kind of pathetic for still yearning for that forever kind of thing. But then she often takes a step back and realize that maybe, she's not the only pathetic person in the world who wants love. Everybody wants love because honestly, who wants to go on living life never knowing what it's like to experience that feeling of impossibility?

It was never a matter of believing that love truly does exist for others out there. It was a matter of believing that it existed for herself. That part is the one Olivia was struggling with the most. Her track record with the men she's been with doesn't exactly incline her to have much faith in ever finding that one person that makes the stars align and make the universe seem like paradise instead of the cruel place that it can be sometimes.

Wiping the tears at the hollow of her eyes, Olivia turned away from the glass door only to find Fitz standing right behind her. There's no saying how long he had been standing there for but judging by the sympathetic look on his face, Olivia knew that he understood exactly what she was feeling. With that unspoken understanding between them, Olivia headed up to her room for a shower and a change of clothes.

…

When Olivia came back down nearly thirty minutes later, she's met with the booming sound of laughter coming from her parent's kitchen. Instinctively, she decided to follow the echoes and there, clad in a pair of grey sweat pants and a cotton white t-shirt was Fitzgerald Grant, in all his beautiful, charismatic glory cooking up something undoubtedly delicious in her parent's kitchen. Glasses of wine were being sipped on and from her post at the kitchen's entry, Olivia listened in awe, hanging on to his every words as Fitz told her parents the corniest stories that had them doubling over in hysterical bouts of laughter.

Not wanting to interrupt the moment, Olivia leaned against the wall and crossed her arms over her chest. And for what seemed to have been hours, she listened and witnessed her parents interact with this man they've only just met but for one reason or another, seemed to be completely charmed and fascinated by him. It absolutely blew Olivia's mind how normal and real it all felt. There was no suffocating tension, no need to prove anything to anyone, no need to impress, no need for a charade. He was just Fitz and her parents absolutely adored him.

It was then Olivia Pope knew it for sure- a revelation; almost an _epiphany_ that was very much predictable but mind-blowing nonetheless. Just like love, Olivia realized that people like Fitzgerald Grant only came once-in-a-lifetime. He was special and there's nothing she wouldn't do to keep him in her life. She deserved him and he deserved her.

At some point, Fitz must've felt her presence in the room because when their eyes met, his lit up like the brightest star in the sky and his lips stretched into the most beautifully thin smile. It nearly took Olivia's breath away.

"Hi friend." His gaze said.

And in return, hers bid back: "Hello friend."

… _Back to the beginning. Any of this sound familiar?_

The spell was soon broken by Maya when she realized that Fitz's attention was completely captivated by something… or rather someone else and the look in his eyes accompanied with the heart fluttering smile on his beautifully handsome face was enough to tell Maya just who their intruder was. And sure as day is clear, when Maya turned around, there stood her daughter leaning against the wall at the entrance of her kitchen, mirroring the same exact look Fitz had with an even brighter smile. Seeing that look in her daughter's eyes being directed at a man like Fitzgerald Grant brought great joy to Maya Pope's heart. She wasn't born yesterday. She's been around the block a few times in her youth and only once in her lifetime has she looked at a man with the intensity that glowed in her daughter's eyes now. Maya knew what that look was. She now had a sliver of hope because her baby girl hadn't completely sworn off men and give up on the idea of love like she said she would the last time they saw each other.

Already busted, Olivia decided to join the trio. She thanked God that she was cautious enough to cover the pale-blue bruise on her cheek with some makeup. The last thing she wanted was to have to explain to her parents what happened to her face and she wasn't sure she could lie her way out of that done.

As Fitz reached up in one of the kitchen's cabinets for a clean glass of wine, Oliva took the opportunity to be enveloped in a warm hug from her dad. They hadn't had the chance to talk much since she got home but she planned to spend the whole day tomorrow, catching up on father-daughter time with her dad.

"God, I missed you, puppy." Her dad whispered, kissing her forehead repeatedly.

Olivia smiled- her heart swelling up again. Puppy was a nickname that only her father could get away with calling her and just now, she realized that no matter how much older and grown she thinks she is, deeply in her heart, she'll always be a daddy's girl.

Blinking through the pool of liquid that blurred her vision, Olivia inhaled through her dad's shirt and sighed. She squeezed her dad around the waist a little bit tighter and held him just for a little bit longer. In return, he happily obliged, doing the same. Cuddled up in his big arms, it was the safest Olivia felt in a while.

"I missed you too, dad." She finally replied.

Dominic smiled and rubbed his hand up and down Olivia's back, holding her just as tightly as she was holding him. Joy overwhelmed his heart, nearly close to bursting heart. "I know you do, puppy." He said. "But you're home and we'll catch up, yeah?"

Finally letting go, Olivia pulled away to look up at her dad and smiled. She couldn't help but marvel at how handsome he still was. Time and aging has been nothing but graceful to him because in his mid-sixties, he looked twenty years younger. They say that black don't crack and if that ain't the most truthful saying, Olivia didn't know what was.

"Promise." Olivia vowed.

Her dad let her go with a nod and Olivia moved onto her mother to get showered with twice as much affection. Being an only child, she couldn't help the fact that she was spoiled and if she was being completely honest, she didn't mind it too much. In fact, she loved it.

Soon, she bid her parents a goodnight, with the promise to be of help tomorrow during Sunday dinner prep. But between them, they knew all too well that she wouldn't be much help at all. If anything, she'll be doing more eating of the ingredients and getting popped on the hand and yelled at by her mother and Mrs. Robinson.

Then, there were two…

As soon as her parents were out of sight, Olivia turned to face Fitz and he welcomed her with a glass of Malbec. With a thankful smile, Olivia took the beverage from him and brought the glass of wine to her lips for a long, healthy sip; moaning with delight at the after taste of robust grape that lingered on her tongue.

Setting her glass down on the counter, Olivia sighed and then finally, she gazed up at Fitz, allowing herself to get lost in the familiar eccentric blue of her eyes. If only for a minute.

"Hi." She whispered.

Fitz took a step forward and gently grazed a lone finger down her face. With a lot of ice, the swelling on her face had gone down rapidly and now, the makeup she wore was doing a good job of covering up the pale blue bruise. Even so, he still thought she was the most beautiful woman he's ever known. Fitz could feel her start to retreat; effectively shying away under his penetrating gaze and that had not been his intention at all. He let his hand drop in front of him, slowly inching towards hers until their fingers found their respective homes in between the empty spaces of each other's hand.

"Okay?" He asked, lowering his head so he could see into her eyes.

Olivia looked at him and nodded. "Okay." She replied in the faintest voice. Exhaustion a clear evidence.

With that said, she came willingly into his arms and melted into the comfort of Fitz's warm chest. Olivia took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of his shirt. A mixture of soft detergent and pure male flesh filled her senses, causing her to sigh again. _So good. So heavenly. Just right._

It was then that Olivia smiled again. Edison could kiss her entire ass because he didn't win today. She didn't allow him to. Despite how terribly this night should've ended with him deciding to make an appearance where he wasn't wanted or invited and making a damn fool of himself and hurting her once again, _everything_ was okay on her end. She couldn't say the same for him though.

 _Choke on that Edison._

…

Later found the duo in the backyard laying in the giant hammock swing tied up to a large tree.

"God, that feels so good!" Moans of pure bliss escaped Olivia's lips as Fitz's hands continued to work on her feet. She had no idea he was so good at this.

She had been sipping on her wine and complaining about how badly the balls of her feet hurt when he pulled her legs onto his lap and started to rotate her ankles and pulling on her toes. Using his thumbs, he applied pressure at the soles of her feet, working up all her pressure points and bringing her the sweetest release.

His hands were something induced with magic. They were so big, so manly and so calloused, yet they were able to provide so much relief and pleasure. Fitz's hand coupled up with the slight midnight breeze and the smell of lilies from her mother's garden filling up her nose, Olivia was sure that she had reached heaven.

"I think you would excel as a masseuse." Olivia told him.

Fitz chuckled. "And here I thought we had plans to pull America's next biggest heist together." He said, referring to the conversation they had that night they were fake breaking and entering into his gym.

"Oh that's still on." Olivia reassured him, smirking. "But I still think you could excel at both. With hands like yours, you could con a person into confessing murder while telling you all their bank account information at the same time." She said. Then suddenly, her eyes grew wide as saucers as if she had just gotten the most brilliant idea. "Maybe that's our cover after we pull it off. Who would think to come after two people who make a living rubbing people's feet? "

Laughter boomed from Fitz's chest. "I'm slightly concerned with how knowledgeable you are when it comes to this stuff." He said. "You got something you wanna share with me, Livvie?"

There he goes calling her that sacred nickname again. Olivia didn't know what to do with herself when he called her that. Pulling her legs towards herself, she thanked him for the massage. And as if Fitz knew something in the mood had changed, he simply nodded and rotated so he could lay next to her.

"C 'mere." He spoke softly.

They shared a blanket so Olivia had no other choice but to oblige. She scooted closer to him until she couldn't even feel the wind blow between them. She used his muscular bicep as a perfect pillow beneath her head and reveled in the feeling of his fingers playing in her hair. She loved that it was this natural, almost subconscious thing to him. Normally, Olivia would mind very much for someone, anyone to start touching her hair without her consent, but with him, she didn't mind it much. It was soothing, almost loving if she dared to say so.

They don't say anything for the longest time. They just stared obliviously at the sky, admiring the midnight glow and in the midst of the darkness, the moon and the stars are perfectly aligned. Words failed both of them to describe exactly how beautiful this moment was so they just let the silence fill in the void that words couldn't.

When the silence ran its course, it's Olivia who spoke first. "What do you want out of life, Fitz?"

She wasn't sure why she would ask such question. She could blame it on this moment looking up at the sky so plainly and wondering what the hell kind of meanings hid behind all those stars and that vibrant silver-crescent moon. It could also be that she's had too much to drink or maybe too much time to think. She spent time at the beach today and she was surrounded by people who made life seem truly beautiful. She almost voided the question, and chalk it up as a result of too much of everything that this day entailed but as soon as she opened her mouth, Fitz answered.

"What everyone wants." His answer was so simple yet so complex.

Olivia rolled on her side until she was face to face with him. "And what is that?"

"To live the American Dream." Fitz replied.

"But that looks different to everyone else." Olivia said. "What does it look like to you?"

He was quiet again. Olivia could see him in deep thought, working the question over in his head, in search for the perfect response. She could tell that Fitz has never really allowed himself to think about this kind of stuff. It might have to do with a lot of different factors. From her knowledge and understanding of him, she knew that he's lived a very distinctive life and maybe because of his experiences and past relationships with people, he's never really dwelled on this particular question.

So Olivia decided to be less general. "Scratch that. Where do you see yourself in ten years?"

Fitz sighed. He's never been much of a fan of time frames. Usually, he sets goals for himself and watch them play out over a period of time. As a firm believer of the saying _"Man plans, God laughs_ ,' he doesn't really allow himself to think this far ahead about his future. He doesn't have the answers to the question she just asked him because he's never thought about it but for Olivia, he'll make the exception. He'll humor her.

"Ten years from now, I'm the proud owner of three businesses…" He begin.

"What kind of business?" Olivia interrupted.

"I already have the gym so maybe a club in Miami and a restaurant here in New York." Fitz replied.

"Nice." Olivia smiled. "I'm sorry… continue."

"… I don't know." Fitz added. "I can only hope to have a big family."

"How big?" Olivia asked.

Fitz shrugged. "As big as possible. Maybe six kids. Although, I suppose I can settle for four."

Olivia smiled. She didn't have to ask why he wanted so many kids. Knowing him, it was pretty self explanatory. Any idiot could guess why.

"I pray God have mercy on that woman's vagina. Whoever she might be."

At that, Fitz laughed. It's so contagious that Olivia can't help but join in on it with him.

"You're mean." Fitz said.

"Hey, I'm just saying." Olivia chuckled. "What else do you want?"

"I guess that's about it." Fitz responded. "It'd be nice to travel too. I hope to make it to Italy and Greece one day. If and when it happens, I hope to be as in love with the woman I marry as the day that I first laid my eyes on her." Something about the way he looked at her when he said that last statement sent a shiver down Olivia's spine and set her skin on fire. She quickly had to remind herself that this was all hypothetical. Just crazy talk that could only occur at this time of the night.

"Anyways, what about you?" Fitz asked.

Olivia looked into his eyes. They looked more like a stormy shade of grey under the lighting of the moon than the cerulean blue she's recognized them to be in pure daylight. They were still the most beautiful eyes Olivia's ever known though. No matter what their shades.

"Some days, I think I want the whole nine yards." She told him. "And then there are other days when I just want adventures."

"Why don't the two collide?" Fitz asked. "Why can't you have both?"

Fitz waited for her response with more anticipation than he'd care to admit. She offered him a sly smile before giving him the most incredible reply. "One is sure to be painful, difficult, devastating, life changing and extraordinary. The other, well, it's just normal, easy and simple. Who in their right mind really wants to make a choice between the two?"

Fitz was too momentarily speechless to follow up on any of it.

…

It was maybe a quarter past two o'clock in the morning when they finally made it back inside the house. The night breeze had become too cold for the thin blanket to absorb. Plus Olivia's grumbling stomach was somewhat problematic also. Fitz led her inside, making sure all the doors were locked before meeting her in the kitchen.

"Want me to fix you something?" He asked.

Olivia's almost hesitant. Her stomach was persistent with making its unhappiness at being empty known but Olivia didn't know what to eat. Sensing her internal battle, Fitz opened the fully stocked fridge in the Popes kitchen and looked around for suggestions. "How about some sliced apples?"

"Sure." Olivia nodded. It sounded good enough.

Fitz picked out three gala apples and made a show of juggling them in the air. Olivia watched him do so with an almost child-like fascination and when he caught her staring, he was all smug about it.

 _"See something you like, pretty?" He asked._

Instant déjà vu.

Olivia rolled her eyes at him. _"Don't flatter yourself, cowboy."_ She replied. "Nobody likes a show off, Fitzgerald. And besides, you weren't even that great." It was a damnable lie. He was great but telling him that wouldn't be too good for his overly large ego, now would it?

"Then how come you were staring so intently?" Fitz questioned, his tone filled with immeasurable sass.

"Maybe cause you looked absolutely ridiculous doing it!" Olivia replied.

Fitz chuckled, not missing out on the déjà vu that just occurred. "You're still one feisty little lady." He said. Turning around, he turned on the faucet under the kitchen sink and washed the apples before setting up a small cutting board and a knife on the counter.

Once again, Olivia watched him perform the art of slicing all three apples with expertise knife skills in no time at all. She wondered how he learned to get so good with a knife. So much of Fitzgerald Grant was still a fascinating mystery to her but it was kind of hard to believe that to be true when some days it feels like she's known him her whole entire life.

"Do you want peanut butter with it?" Fitz asked.

Olivia shook her head as she reached for a slice of the crispy, sweet apple. "No. Thank you." She popped the slice in her mouth and moaned at the burst of juiciness and sweetness that burned her tongue. It tasted so organic, so delicious that Olivia was sure they were from her mom's garden. She made a mental note to herself to steal some in a bag before she leaves.

"Water?"

Olivia nodded and Fitz tossed a bottle at her across the counter.

They ate in silence. The crunching sound of the crisp apples the only audible thing. After they finished, Fitz rinsed up the cutting board and the knife then wiped the counter with some paper towels.

When they finally headed up for bed, it was closer to three in the morning. They didn't do the whole charade of going to their respectful rooms down the opposite halls from each other. There was no way and besides, if anyone had something to say about it, they could argue that they were grown. So, when Olivia entered her room, Fitz followed right behind her.

"Whoa, nice room." Fitz commented.

It wasn't like anything he'd expected. Nothing made too much sense about the décor of the room and it threw Fitz off a little bit. Everything was mismatched but it still held this aura of warmth and welcome to it. Fitz guessed that was what made the room look so cool. The walls were a soft beige with hand painted patterns in peacock blue. Her closet doors were a vivid red and had a lot of signatures on it printed in silver-permanent marker. She had a tall shelf that occupied a lot of records and books. Custom nightstands and mirrors contrasted fairly with her Adras Ikat print pillows and pistachio colored linens. Even cooler was the bright orange chaise longue with the throw pillows that sat right by her window. She had the most beautiful view of her mom's garden from that angle. Fitz could picture her as a teenager perched up on that chair listening to music obnoxiously loud while doing homework.

"Thanks." Olivia said, pushing the comforter back on her huge, queen sized mattress. "It wasn't always this cool." She admitted. Over the years, she's changed the appearance of this room multiple times. She kind of grew into this room come to think of it because as she aged and became more mature, so did this room. "It used to be super girly with posters of naked boy bands and literature. The walls also used to be obnoxiously purple but don't hold that against me. I was sixteen then and I didn't know any better."

Fitz chuckled as he jumped into bed with her. Her bed and pillows were very comfortable. By the time she'd gotten around to shut off her lamp, he was almost asleep. A muffled cry stirred him awake.

"You heard that too, right?" Olivia said, looking at him for confirmation.

Then it was a loud moan before they both could hear the sound of a headboard banging against a wall. The unmistakable sound of Maya's voice begging _"don't stop_ " caused Olivia to sit up straight in her bed.

"Is that-"

"My parents fucking like jack rabbits? Yes." Olivia looked absolutely horrified and Fitz couldn't for the life of him contain the laughter that burst out of him. _Holy shit!_ They were loud.

"So much for sleeping, right?"

By the sound of it, it seemed that her parents were just getting started. Olivia grabbed a pillow and pressed it over her head to release a loud groan. It was gonna be an even longer night.

888

Even though they didn't get to bed until the wee hours of the night, the next morning around ten o'clock, Olivia woke up feeling refreshed and well rested despite having to wait out her parent's loud marathon of wall-banging. She had expected Fitz to still be in her bed but the cold sheets on the other side of her bed told her that he must've sneaked out some time this morning. Giving a loud yawn, she begin to stretch out of bed.

Olivia wasn't very surprised to find that Fitz had taken over her parent's kitchen once again this morning to serve breakfast. Now more than ever, he was earning good points with Mrs. Robinson who looked a little more than pleased to hand over her throne as the Pope family's chef over to him.

"Morning everyone." She announced her presence.

All heads snapped to her and once she was within reach of her dad, he pulled her to him by wrapping his arms around her waist. "Morning daddy." Olivia smiled.

"You slept well, puppy?"

At that, Olivia glanced over at Fitz behind the counter and they both grinned at each other- knowing all too well that sleep didn't really come easy after hearing her parents fucking like animals throughout the wee hours of dawn. It was then too that they both silently agreed that they were going to give her parents a little bit of hell over that as soon as they all sat around the table to start breakfast.

"Want some coffee?" Fitz asked.

Olivia shook her head no. "Tea." She replied.

"You got it boss." Fitz said.

Then Olivia turned her attention over to her dad again and finally answered his question. "Slept like a baby." She replied grinning before she leaned down and pressed a kiss on his forehead.

Separating from him, Olivia then gave Mrs. Robinson a morning kiss on the cheek. "Morning Mrs. Robinson." She said. "How are you this fine morning, beautiful?"

"I've been kicked out of my own damn kitchen by a gorgeous young man." Mrs. Robinson replied, a smile on her face and her islander accent as thick as ever. "I've never been better, sweetheart."

Olivia smiled and took her seat next to her dad at the table. Noticing that her mother hadn't shown up yet for breakfast, Olivia frowned. "Where's mama?" She asked her dad.

And as if on cue, her mother came strolling into the kitchen. Her normally straight hair was a hot mess of curls this morning. She had a glow to her skin and she walked a little funny. She had that througouhly fucked look.

 _Oh_. This was great. Olivia wasn't going to miss the opportunity to tease her mother. She was going to enjoy this.

"A good morning to thee, Mrs. Pope." She flashed her mother a smile. "I'm gonna go ahead and say you had an _**aaaah-ma-zing**_ night since I beat you to breakfast on this _**holy**_ _Sunday morning_?"

"Fuck's sake, Olivia." Knowing exactly what her daughter knew, embarrassment flushed Maya's face as she ran her fingers through her wild curls.

"Ooh, your majesty curses? On the good Lord's day of all days?" Olivia continued to tease.

Maya rolled her eyes. She reached her husband at the table and leaned down to press a sound and sweet kiss on his lips. Their little PDA didn't totally disgust Olivia. She didn't get people who felt sick to their stomach when their parents showed affection publicly. She loved that. Something about her parents still being affectionate with each other after being married for so long killed the myth that all the passion that started a marriage between two people who once upon a time loved each other, withers with time and age. Olivia liked knowing the fact that her parents still got their freak on because how many children today whose parents have been married as long as hers have can proudly admit that their parents still loved each other in that way?

"Tell your daughter to leave me alone." Maya pleaded to her husband as she took a seat at the other head of the table where she occupied and ruled for decades as the Queen of the Pope household.

"Oh, so you didn't have an _aaaah-ma-zing_ night?" Dominic teased too. He too knew what his daughter knew and he didn't really mind the teasing much. He was a sexual being and still after this many years, he found his wife hot enough to make love to her. There was still fun and pleasure to be found with her. She still turned him on and there was no shame in that to him. "And here I thought I'd given you my best moves, baby." To that, the table burst into laughter, even Mrs. Robinson did after she caught up to what was going on. Olivia high fived her father and Dominic smirked when his wife covered her face with her hands in annoyance and embarrassment.

When Maya finally found the courage to look back up, Dominic blew her a kiss and winked. "Chin up. It'll be over Monday."

"I'll kill both of you by then." Maya said.

Shortly after, Fitz served breakfast and the four settled around the table to eat.

"Thank you, honey." Maya said when Fitz poured her a glass of Orange Juice.

Nodding, Fitz blushed. "Welcome Mrs. Pope." After having heard Maya's scream of pleasure last night, Fitz wasn't sure he could really call her by her first name anymore.

"Oh you too?" Maya gaped.

"You were… kind of loud." Fitz admitted.

The rest of breakfast went smoothly. Olivia continued to mercilessly tease her mother as her father completed the morning paper's puzzle.

"Ro," Maya addressed Mrs. Robinson. "How come Eli didn't join us for breakfast?"

"Oh he went out of town." Mrs. Robinson replied. "With Olivia home for more than a few hours, he figured today's Sunday dinner should be special."

"Can you pass the milk?" Olivia asked.

The milk was next to her mother and it was too far for her to reach so Fitz stood up to get it to her. "I got it." He grabbed the pitcher and begin to pour the liquid slowly into Olivia's cooling cup of tea. "More?"

Olivia decided she wanted to get under her mother's skin some more so she nodded. _"Yes baby. Don't stop."_ She moaned, throwing her head back in mocked ecstasy. _"Always more."_ Taking the newspaper next to her father, she begin to fan herself as she looked at her mother who wasn't the least bit pleased about any of it. And it was taking everything Fitz had in him not to spill the milk as he begin vibrating with muffled laughter.

Dominic could only sit back and smirk at his daughter's antiques. It served them right. He knew that he and his wife wouldn't get away with their recklessness that easily after having been heard so he was more than willing to take in the incessant teasing. He had a thicker skin than his wife who looked ready to pop a vein across from him at the table. "Breathe baby. It'll be over soon." He offered.

This time, there was no threat of murder.

Breakfast ended thirty minutes later. Mrs. Robinson helped Fitz clean up as Olivia continued to moan or whimper everything she said to her mother.

Finally having had enough, Maya pushed back her chair at the table and stood up. "I swear y'all ain't shit." She said, her pointer finger going back and forth from her daughter to her husband.

"I love you, momma!" Olivia shouted after her mother.

In the kitchen, Fitz could hear Olivia dying of laughter as Maya left the dinning table. Popping her head into the kitchen for a brief second, Maya called out to Fitz.

"Thank you for breakfast, Fitzgerald. It was lovely."

Fitz winked at her. "It was no trouble at all." He replied, taking a clean bowl from Mrs. Robinson to dry up.

A permanent smile plastered on Fitz's face long after Maya left. He peaked at Olivia through the kitchen and smiled. He loved how free and at home she looked. He loved that breathless smile she had on her face as she talked to her dad. He loved that beautiful, unique laughter that escaped her lips when her mother told her she wasn't shit in regards to her merciless teasing. He loved that she had such a great family and he loved to see her this happy.

Fitz had never felt more grateful in that moment to be a part of such an unforgettable moment. Never been more grateful to be surrounded by so much realness and normalcy. Never been more grateful to be a witness to something so wonderful. He was glad that he decided to join Olivia when she had asked him.

Unbeknownst to him, while he was standing in the middle of kitchen with heart eyes, Mrs. Robinson was studying him the whole time. Once he managed to snap out of it, he realized that he'd been caught.

"You love my Ollie, don't you?" It wasn't even a question. Hell, it wasn't even a statement.

It was kind of a known fact almost. As sure as the sky is blue to human eyes, and as sure as rain is clear. It was then that it dawned on Fitz. Like an _epiphany_ , as well as all those other facts held true, Fitzgerald Grant knew that he loved Olivia Pope. And for the first time since he knew; that very first night when he woke up to find her wrapped up in his chest, breathing his scent… for the first time since then, Fitz felt brave enough to admit his secret to someone else out loud. "Yes. I do." He replied.

He felt that it would be insulting to lie to Mrs. Robinson's face. Fitz could tell that she was a no-non-sense kind of woman. She could see right through people's bullshit and the greys in her long, natural hair told him that she's seen some shit in her days and therefore, she could be pretty intuitive. There was no use in not being truthful with her. _Besides, she kind of reminded him of someone he used to know._

"Why don't you tell her?" Mrs. Robinson asked curiously.

Fitz shrugged. Everything good that he's ever had in his life never lasted long. (i.e., His parents, Voight, ex-girlfriends etc…) With Olivia, he's been given another opportunity at something great again. Her pureness, the way she laughs and loves fiercely, the way she smile and weaken him at the knees, the way she spoke and listened to every word when spoken to, the way she treats and care for people, strangers or familiar… it was rare. She was rare, one of a kind and Fitz intended for her to last longer than those who never stayed too long. He didn't want to do anything rash that could potentially annihilate this effortless rapport and connection that's built between them in such a short period of knowing each other.

"It's not the right time." Fitz answered.

And to that, Mrs. Robinson laughed. The sound almost soulful to Fitz's ears. "Every once in a while, in the middle of an ordinary life, this thing call love comes around unannounced, knocking at your door when you're least expecting it to deliver a little something called fairytale. It's never quite like the movies or romance novels. That crap is more for entertainment. You see, the real thing; real love, it's messy and it will never be easy. Hell child, I can almost guarantee you that it will rip a part of your soul before it's even done with you. It tends to suck that way but it's the best, most exhilarating feeling in the world and without it, we're all just existing." Mrs. Robinson continued on without missing a beat as he watched Fitz hang on to her every word with a glow in his blue eyes. "You seem like a wonderful, young man, Fitzgerald so stop simply existing, honey. Start living. You're catching my drift?"

Fitz gave a nod in understanding.

"So you tell her, alright? Tell her now because there's never gonna be a right time. Tell her now before it's too late." Mrs. Robinson said.

Fitz didn't get a chance to reply because he heard footsteps coming and before he could guess who it was, Olivia's head popped into the kitchen. With Mrs. Robinson's back to her, curiosity caused her to frown as to the nature of whatever conversation she's sure she just interrupted. Looking at Fitz, she mouthed to him: _"What's going on?"_

 _'Wouldn't you like to know?'_ Fitz thought, shrugging back at her with a smile.

The glow in Fitz's blue eyes told Mrs. Robinson exactly who their intruder was and she turned around to face Olivia.

"Am I interrupting a life changing speech or something?" Olivia asked all in good humor and Fitz chuckled at that.

 _If only she knew…_

Mrs. Robinson was kind of notorious for her wisdom and speeches. It's one of the many reasons why Olivia loved her and respected her so much. Sometimes, the elder woman reminded her too much of her Nana Giselle whom she used to go to for everything when she was still alive.

"We were just discussing a menu for dinner later." Mrs. Robinson told a little white lie. "I'll go call that husband of mine while he's still in town to make sure he's bringing all the ingredients." Passing Olivia, Mrs. Robinson stopped just long enough to admire Olivia's beautiful face. "God, you remind me so much of your grandmother." She said, a hint of sadness in her voice as she pushed a stray of curls behind Olivia's ears.

Olivia bent her head down a bit to receive the gentle kiss that was place on her cheek. "You've been gone too long, Ollie. I forget how beautiful you are. Fitz outta come visit more often if it means I get to see your face."

Before Olivia could say anything, Mrs. Robinson was gone.

"I don't know how you do it, Ace." Olivia said to Fitz.

He clenched his eyebrows, acting clueless. "Do what?" He asked.

"You got Mrs. Robinson to like you." Olivia whispered, as if to let him in a secret. "She never likes the men I bring home. _Friends or not."_

"Maybe I'm just that charming." He said in a perfect British accent.

Olivia chuckled. "No one likes a bragger, Fitzgerald." She scolded.

"Well in that case, I suppose I won't let that be my downfall." He said.

Olivia looked at him, smiled and shook her head. She couldn't believe how unbelievably normal it felt to have him here in her parent's house. He didn't have to pretend to be someone he wasn't. He was just himself. He didn't have to fight to blend in… he just did as if he belonged here all along. It's never been that way with anyone she ever brought home. Not even with Edison who her parents moderately tolerated.

"What?" Fitz asked approaching her, effectively closing the distance between them.

"Nothing." Olivia replied.

When he was within her reach, he grabbed her hand and entwined their fingers. "Oh, no it's definitely not nothing." He said, pointing out subtly just how well he knows her. "You got a look on your face, Miss. Pope."

Olivia looked into his eyes and sighed. "It's just…" She struggled to put into words how good it felt to have him here this weekend around her family. With her. "Thank you for being here with me this weekend." She settled on those words instead.

Fitz threw an arm around shoulders and tickled the back of her neck. Before they both knew it, she was in his arms, wrapped up in a hug. He kissed the crown of her head. "Thanks for inviting me, Fireball. It feels good to be here."

The moment however lasted very short because Olivia's dad came running in the kitchen all excited about something. Their bodies parted but their fingers were still very much clasped together like magnets.

"What's up dad?" Olivia asked.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to go to the ranch. Spend some quality with your old man for old time's sake." Dominic said, a smile on his face. He always had a smile. It was his temperament. Hardly was he ever in a foul mood. He was such a peaceful man and he believed that as long as one had something to do, something to look forward to and someone to love, there was no reason for you to be unhappy. And with his wealth, his fulfilling job as a husband and father, and a family like his, he had so much to be grateful for every day so he was always a happy man.

"Sounds good, dad." Olivia nodded.

"Okay, puppy. Let me know when you're ready to go."

After her father left, Olivia extended a silent invitation for Fitz to join her at the ranch with her father. Fitz politely declined her invitation because he didn't want to intrude on her time with her father. He was a big boy, he's sure he could find ways to keep himself entertained without her around for a couple of hours.

888

 **At the ranch…**

"You're doing alright, puppy?" Dominic asked. "Your mother told me about you and Edison… how things ended. I'm sorry I didn't contact you sooner to talk. I know how you are. I wanted to give you some space to yourself."

All Olivia could do was smile as she leaned her head on her father's strong arm. She was tired of Edison being in every conversation she's had this weekend. She didn't want thoughts of that asshole pestering her while she was out with her dad on such a beautiful piece of land, staring at green pastures and the work of God and nature. She's already given Edison too much of her time for him to come in between her time with her father. It's already been way too long since she's hung out with her dad solo and truly talk about things. Once upon a time, they used to be pros at father-daughter time and if she was being honest, Olivia longed after those days a lot. Especially now with him telling her that he misses not seeing her so often anymore back at the house.

But the day for longing was long gone because today was a brand new day and life was affording them the opportunity to create new memories together. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon and the weather was more than fair in the high seventies. The trees were greener and more alive than they were the day before, the air smelled almost clean and the sun was shining brightly. It was a great day for a nice long ride and a delightful picnic with her father. Just like the old days.

"I'm fine, dad." Olivia replied smiling as she snuggled deeper into her father's arm. "Today's gonna be a great day and I don't wanna spend another second talking about Edison Davis." His name sounder more bitter than usual on her tongue and it rolled off her tongue with an uneasiness and clogged her intestines. It might've had something to do with him coming all the way over to her parent's home, drunk off his ass and assaulting her physically. Then again, it could be the simple fact that he was a shitty human being and Olivia absolutely hated him. Take your pick.

"Okay." Dominic agreed. "You won't believe your eyes when you see Belle. That old' broad's all grown up."

"Do I hear nostalgia in your tone, old man?" Olivia teased as she looked up into her father's golden hazel eyes.

"Of course it is!" Dominic replied shamelessly. "When we got Belle for you, you were thirteen and I could swear you spent most of your time talking to that horse than actual human beings."

Olivia chuckled, remembrance washing over her in a peaceful wave. "Horses are very trustworthy and I had to tell somebody all my secrets." She said.

"That's right." Dominic smiled. "And now my puppy's all grown up. I miss those old days."

It wasn't cold enough to blame her misty eyes on the harsh winters that the east coast usually harbors so Olivia had to make up something about dust falling into her eyes in order to hide her sudden emotional outburst. Truth is, no matter how old she gets or no matter how long of a fall out she and her father had during her rebellious age, deep down, she'll always be a daddy's girl. And only God knows how grateful she is to have the man she calls her father be the kind, gentle, forgiving and loving human being that he is. She seriously lucked out.

"Nothing's changed." Olivia promised. "I'm still your puppy. I always will be."

Dominic leaned down and a placed a kiss on his daughter's forehead. She was wrong. Everything had changed but somethings still remained the same. His Vie would forever be his little girl and he'll forever love her. Nothing would ever change that. Not even time.

"Ready for a fun day?" He asked.

The stable finally came into view and Olivia could see the shiny blue coat of her father's stallion, Heath doing laps around the ranch. Several feet away, she spotted Lady, her mother's beautiful brown broad and Heath's soulmate being fed an apple by one of the trainers/workers at her father's ranch.

Olivia smiled as memories of her teenage years came flooding back at her in strong waves. This place was one of the many places that brought her some of the greatest memories. And at the moment, she couldn't think of a better way to spend her Sunday.

888

Around six o'clock that evening, Olivia came home running. She almost felt like her ten year old self again, racing home before her dad after dance recital or piano lessons to see what mom had cooked for dinner.

"Slow down, puppy!" Her father shouted after her. "It's not really fair if you're off like a cheetah. My old bones can't handle that kind of speed."

This all fell to death's ears as Olivia bolted through the front door.

"I'm here!" She announced.

When the only sound that came back to her was the echo of her voice ringing throughout the house, Olivia frowned as she marched deeper into the house. And once in the kitchen, she could hear the booming sound of laughter coming out from the yard. Smiling to herself, Olivia thought about how much of a factor that laughing has been since she showed up with Fitz. Clearly, that couldn't be a coincidence.

"Where's everyone?" Her dad's almost breathless voice came behind her seconds later. Olivia turned her head to see him chugging a bottle of water.

"You are getting old." She teased before sliding open the glass door that lead to the backyard. Her dad followed after her.

Both Popes came to a startling stop at the sight presented before them at the backyard. Soft music was being played through the speakers as Fitzgerald Grant charmed Mrs. Robinson's panties off with his dance moves. On the other side of the yard, Maya's head was thrown back in laughter. She sat on a lounger by the pool, the setting sun bouncing off her golden brown as she sipped on a fruity beverage of some sort. Mr. Robinson was sitting next to her looking just as amused and entertained as he watched his wife being wooed by Fitz. In the pool, someone was doing laps at the speed of a shark. Olivia couldn't tell who.

"And here I thought we were late for dinner." Olivia said, announcing her presence.

She watched her dad skip to her mom's side. Scooting over, Maya made room for her dad who then joined her on the small lounger. His head instantly took shelter against her mother's chest after he greeted her with a kiss on the lips.

"Hey baby!" Her mom shouted across the pool to her and blew her a kiss in the air. The woman was clearly blissfully tipsy.

Olivia stared down at an approaching Fitz who wore a guilty smirk on his face. Without needing to ask, Olivia knew that he was the host of this little party that she was very uninvited to.

"You're responsible for this, aren't you?" Olivia asked.

Fitz continued to smirk as he pulled her into his arms for a hug. His hand somehow found its way through her messy hair and he scratched her scalp before placing a kiss at the crown of her head. "I don't know who you take me for, but I never kiss and tell, Miss Pope." He whispered in her ear.

Olivia smiled; pushing at his chest. "Fine. Play coy."

A body finally surfaced from the bottom of the pool and up came Harrison's head, wiping off the water in his eyes as he heaved breathlessly for oxygen. Olivia was taken aback but she couldn't deny that it was a welcomed surprise to see her cousin, although she was questioning the nature of his visit. Harrison probably hasn't showed up for a Sunday dinner at the Pope's residence in about as long as Olivia. Even longer than that maybe.

…

Inside, Olivia met Cece who had been hard at work, consulting a co-worker on a case over the phone when she arrived. Though she wouldn't admit it aloud, Olivia was kind of glad to see the girl again, as she had taken a liking to her over the little time they've spent getting to know each other briefly the previous day. Olivia had never before taken to any of Harrison's little flings because most of the time, their inner beauties didn't match what was on the outside. Most of them were usually downright ill-mannered and felt entitled to Harrison's time. It was one of the main reasons why that the two cousins had lost touch over the years because Olivia couldn't stand to be around the women that Harrison usually went for. Cece however, Olivia liked her just fine.

Once inside, dinner prep was in full swing. Everyone got a job to do. Even Harrison who's no good for nothing in the kitchen got something to do. Mrs. Robinson was in charge of the greens and tenderloin while her husband catered to roasting the vegetables. Maya was hands deep in making her famous cornbread while Olivia and Cece worked together on the salad alongside Harrison who was responsible for the dressing. Fitz was on dessert duty. He had proudly volunteered to be in charge - promising everyone a treat that would be out of this world delicious. No one doubted his abilities. Dominic's only job was to pour a bottle of chilled wine into a pitcher. After deeming his task the manliest of the jobs, he got kicked out by his wife and the man more than obliged, skipping off to the living room hopping to catch a game of college football.

After fulfilling her duty on salad prep, Olivia washed her hands under the sink in the kitchen before she started to annoy her mother. The delicious aroma of the cornbread her mom was making was causing her stomach to growl.

"Can I have some, mama?" Olivia asked, wrapping her arms around her mom's waist.

"Soon." Maya replied.

Impatient and honestly not satisfied with the answer she got, Olivia whined. "How many minutes is soon?"

Maya couldn't help but chuckle. Entwining her fingers with Olivia's, she craned her neck to place a gentle kiss on her daughter's cheek. Memories came flooding back at Maya in powerful waves and she got teary eyed when she realized that her Livia hadn't changed much over the years. The same thing that Olivia was doing now- standing by the stove while she cooked and begged incessantly to be fed before the meal was ready- Olivia used to do the exact same thing as a kid. Maya was just grateful that she could still have moments like this with her only child.

"Not too long, baby." Maya assured her.

Olivia still groaned. She knows that she'll only be eating that cornbread at the dinner table, just like everybody else when it was ready and not one minute before. But she did it to humor her mother because she knows how much the little moments meant to her. How much she treasured them and Olivia wanted to give her the gift of as many as possible.

"Fine." She kissed her mother's cheek before she left the kitchen.

She had to get away from all that mouthwatering food or there was no guarantee that she would wait for dinner to be served.

Olivia had only gotten as far as the hallway leading to the living room when she heard footsteps behind her. Turning around, she was not surprised when she saw that it was Harrison trailing after her.

"Hi Lili." He smiled.

Olivia smiled back, knowing that her only called her by that nickname when he wanted something from her.

"Whatchu want from me, Harrison?" She asked.

Harrison frowned. "Can't a man just wanna hang out with his favorite cousin?"

"You're so full of shit." Olivia said, shaking her head. "Come on. Lead the way."

They raced upstairs to the attic and then climbed a ladder which brought them to the very top of the house on the roof. Their spot. It's where they often came to clear their minds without worrying about being bothered. They came up with some of their greatest ideas and created some of their best memories up there as children. It's always been where they told each other their deepest secrets. It's always been where they could escape to smoke a blunt or two, feel the wind beating on their faces and look at the world together as teenagers. They never needed a reason to come up here. It's always been theirs.

"I wish we had a blunt right about now." Olivia confessed; reminiscing about the old days.

"Shit, me too." Harrison agreed, laughing.

Though the floor was guaranteed to be filthy, neither cared as they lie down next to each other and just stared up at the sky, letting the cool breeze of the evening graze against their cheeks and whisper in their ears. The feeling of peace that came with it very much welcomed.

"You need to ask, so ask." Olivia said after a few minutes.

Harrison thought that they could ease their way into the conversation but as usual, there was never a need for sugar-coating anything with his cousin. She was a straight shooter in that sense.

"What happened with you and Edison?" Harrison asked.

Just the mention of his name was enough to anger Olivia all over again and her get blood boiling. She didn't understand how it was possible to have such a profound dislike for someone she thought she used to love at one point in time. Collecting herself, Olivia took a deep breath before answering Harrison.

"He cheated, I left and now he's drinking himself to a liver failure."

"That mother fucker!' Harrison seethed. "I should've fucking killed him yesterday."

"And what? Have you go to jail?" Olivia questioned. "Trust me, Edison is not worth all that trouble. I'm over him and I'm over what happened yesterday."

"Okay." Harrison wasn't completely convinced that was the truth but he had to admit that Olivia was doing better than he had expected after what happened yesterday. Olivia often had a tendency to shut down and keep to herself when she was hurt. It's exactly what happened after their Nana passed away and though Harrison knew that what occurred yesterday varied in contrast to the death of their grandmother, he still didn't want to take any chances. He'd be lying if he said that the reason he showed up to aunt Maya's today for dinner wasn't specifically to make sure that Olivia was doing okay. Being as honest as possible, he wasn't looking forward to another episode of Olivia hitting rock bottom. The first time was bad enough. Only he knew what it did to him to watch someone he loves so much go through so much pain all by herself and after the last time, Harrison had promised himself that he would always look out after his cousin. He sure as hell wasn't going to let an asshole like Edison be the reason why his cousin sank into a period of deep depression or even worse because he had the audacity to put his hands on her. Now more than ever, Harrison is thinking that he should've fucking buried Edison yesterday! And as upset as he was at the moment, he wasn't sure if that wasn't going to be his first order of business as soon as he got back to New York.

"What's the deal with you and Fitz?" Harrison asked.

Olivia shrugged. "Nothing. We're just friends."

"Hmmm…" Harrison muttered.

He wasn't going to be the one to call bullshit on that statement because he knew Olivia. After Edison, she needed time to herself before she was even open to the possibility of dating again but Harrison knew. There was definitely no _"just friends"_ where Fitz and Olivia was concerned. He only spent five minutes in their presence the previous day before he was able to see it and he's sure that anyone with a pair of eyes can see a mile away that they weren't going to be _"just friends"_ for much longer. Not with the way they looked at each other like they were the only two that existed whenever they were in a room together.

"I like him." Harrison told her. If it was a matter of opinion, he was for that relationship. He was rooting for it hardcore and he didn't even know Fitz as well as he should. Who knows? Maybe it was being with Celery but he was definitely getting soft around the edges when it came to all his cousins and men sniffing around them.

Plus, he didn't miss the little smile that blossomed on Olivia's lips when he voiced his approval of Fitzgerald. She was such a goner and homegirl didn't even know it yet. _God bless her soul_.

"I like Cece. She's good for you." Olivia then told him.

This pleased Harrison very much. Olivia might not know this about him but even though he acts as if he doesn't care about anyone's opinion when it came to the matter of his personal life, he cared what Olivia thought deeply. Given that they weren't very far off in age, Olivia was kind of like the bigger-little sister he never got. She drove him up walls as kids and he looked forwards to the ass kicking she delivers to him every once in a while whenever he's in desperate need of it. She keeps him in line so while Harrison might not give a fuck what anybody else's opinion of him and his lifestyle, Olivia Pope was the exception and it hasn't been easy to live up to her expectations. Not that he has to but he fought hard to try to.

Olivia's hated every single woman he's introduced her to and she was never shy about voicing her dislike to the women out loud but out of the whole bunch of them over the years, Celery seemed to have been the lucky one because Olivia didn't shred her to pieces and have her running for the hills already. Although Harrison was still threading on pins and needles, waiting for the shit to hit the fan so to speak, he thought it was pretty safe to say that he was sort of in the clear when he watched Cece's interaction with Olivia just minutes ago when they were downstairs making the salad. They truly had a liking to each other and that was important to Harrison. He didn't even know when he decided that Cece just might be the first woman he brings home for Thanksgiving dinner this fall to meet the whole Lewis-Pope-Wright squad. Though he can't say that he was looking forward to that day with too much excitement, he was willing to go through it because of Cece. He loved that girl so for her, he'd do anything.

"You'd better like her." Harrison said. "Cause I think I'm gonna marry that girl one day soon."

At that, Olivia sat up abruptly. She thought she must've heard wrong because she could've sworn she just heard Harrison utter the word _**"marry"**_ as finally growing the hell up; as in finally ceasing to be such a "commitment phobe", as in finally settling down in a white picket fence, (well maybe not white picket fence. Maybe a penthouse,) with 2.5 children and a golden retriever.

Olivia never thought she'd live to see the day this startling development occurred.

"Are you serious?" She asked.

Harrison nodded, still laying down. "As a serious as a heart attack." He answered.

Olivia lie back down next to him and let those words settle for her. She could only come with one word for how this all felt and sounded to her: Wow.

Just wow.

A few minutes later, Olivia was still in shock but she thought she should probably say something.

"I'll do a little bit of detective work for you." She volunteered. "I'll find out her taste, what her style is in regards to things like that so that when you're ready to pick out a ring, you won't be totally clueless."

 _'Always doing the Lord's work'_ Harrison thought. He bumped Olivia's shoulder before wrapping an arm around her neck. "I always did like you." He said.

Olivia rolled her eyes. "Or maybe you're just full of shit." She said. "Try not to fuck up between now and then."

Harrison gave her a sure nod. "I'll try not to but I can't promise anything. I'm only human."

They both laughed.

Minutes passed again before Olivia's stomach started to growl again. This time, it wasn't a warning. This was the real thing. It was either feed her or somebody was going to pay the wrath of that hunger. It also didn't really help that she could smell all the delicious foods being cooked all the way up there on the roof. Deciding that she wasn't going to waste another second hungry, Olivia begin to stand up. "Come on, let's go!" She snapped her fingers at Harrison to hurry it up. "Food's calling my name."

"Fatty." Harrison teased.

Olivia kicked his leg. "Asshole."

This was more like them. And Harrison knew then that his cousin was going to be just fine.

…

Dinner was served at eight-thirty. After everyone had cleaned up and settled around the table, Mrs. Robinson insisted that they said a prayer and Harrison being the youngest one at the table obliged. He kept his prayer brief with a simple; "For good food and those who prepared it, we thank you, Lord. Amen!"

Olivia was entirely too grateful.

The Caesar salad was passed around first and over that, they chose to discuss politics and the upcoming election. Olivia chose to not say much during that conversation, only nodding when she agreed with a statement because she was extremely apolitical but between us, if it's a matter of honest opinions, Olivia thought that both Hilary and Trump were a pair of ain't shit, ain't never gonna be shit candidates. Although, it was interesting to hear what everyone else at the table had to say. By the time they got to their entrees which consisted of cornbread, spinach stuffed tenderloin, collard greens and roasted veggies, only moans of gusto could be heard for a long while by all members at the table.

Clean up was done fairly quick with the help of everyone and soon enough, they all moved to the living room to await Fitz's delightful dessert. It was also then that Maya got the brilliant idea to pull out the photo albums. Olivia shook her head. Oh no! She didn't approve. Behind every picture, there was always a story to be told by her mom or dad. Photo albums only served to embarrass her and suck all the joy out of her life.

"Mom, please don't!" Olivia begged.

Maya laughed at her daughter's all too sudden state of distress. "Why not?"

Olivia pouted and crossed her arms over her chest, much like she used to as a child. Nothing's changed at all. "You know why!"

Just then, Fitz decided to emerge from the kitchen carrying a large tray of their desserts. Olivia buried her hands in her face and the urge to scream wasn't too far behind. Of course he'd be present to witness one of the many embarrassing moments of her life created by Maya Pope. Of course.

Harrison who had been in the kitchen, offering him a helping him followed right after Fitz. The two had really taken a liking to each other after beating into Edison's face the previous night and then spending all afternoon together today.

As soon as Harrison saw the photo album though, his face grew into a wide smile as laughter started to groan from his chest and then booming out of his lungs. "Oh, this is going to be good."

Olivia rolled her eyes. "I don't like none on y'all." She said.

Fitz on the other hand was very much interested in finding out why Olivia was so against the photo album being seen.

"Think of it as payback for this morning." Maya said.

Olivia fought to say something; looking back and forth at Fitz and her dad for some kind of rescue but neither offered any help. Instead, they both wore similar grins on their faces as they shrugged at her. Realizing quickly that she had no defense or ammunition, Olivia's shoulders sagged. Karma is one little hairy bitch and it's come back to bite her back in the ass. She was just gonna have to suffer through an hour long of those embarrassing moments of her life.

"Thanks for nothing, Ace!" Olivia said.

"Curiosity killed the cat." Fitz blew her a kiss across the room as he settled the tray in which their desserts awaited. "Sorry babe. I'm only human."

The desserts on display served as a minimal distraction. Olivia was plotting on snatching the album and running away with it but it wouldn't really be much help. There was more where that first one came from and she knew that her mom had no qualms about pulling out all five.

"These look delicious, Fitz." Cece commented.

On the tray, the affogato trifles looked mouthwatering- made just right with layer crushed biscotti, two scoops of softened vanilla ice cream, a cloud of whipped cream and a shot of strong, hot espresso. The choice of chocolate or caramel syrup was drizzled over the ice cream. A pinch of cinnamon powder was dusted on top of the sundae for a hint of sharpness that balanced very well with all the sweetness.

Olivia couldn't resist taking a picture of the dish. She couldn't wait to brag to Abby about being the master chef behind the dessert even though she knew there was no chance in seven hells that the redhead would believe her.

"Send that picture to me." Cece requested. Before midnight hit, it was going up somewhere on social media. Something as delicious looking had to be shared with the world. It would be a crime not to.

It could be said for everyone that the first bite was like a taste of heaven. Moans of delight come flying out of everyone's mouths and every bite served as an added layer to everyone's life. Way too soon, the photo album is opened and Olivia can't even be mad when the laughter starts at her expense as her mother told the story behind a picture of her at two years old, with her body covered in butter and flour. By the fifth picture, everyone is too delirious with laughter to be bothered with her so she takes the opportunity to sneak off to make a phone call. After the second ring, Abby's voice filled Olivia's ear.

 _"Here I thought you forgot about little ol' me." Abby answered_.

"Never." Olivia said smiling. "I miss you gingersnap."

 _Abby sighed. "I miss you too." She said. "I should've came with you."_

Instantly, Olivia knew Abby's somber mood definitely has something to do with Deborah. So she asked. "Why? What did Deborah do?"

 _An aggravated growl came from Abby's lips. "I hate her, Liv."_

Olivia chuckled. This promised to be a great story. "No, you don't."

 _"Fine, I don't," Abby agreed. "But I have a very deep dislike for the woman."_

"What did she do?" Olivia asked again.

 _"So my mother's a hoe." Abby begin._

Abby hadn't even started yet and Olivia was already laughing. She felt as if she needed to sit down for this story so Olivia slid down against the wall in the hallway and sat on the floor- the phone to her ears ready to get her life from this story.

"How so?" She probed.

 _"… Okay. This is what happened."_ Abby eased into the story with much needed dramatic effect. _"Y'know how Deborah was pretty adamant about spending quality mother-daughter time with me?"_

Olivia nodded. Forgetting that the redhead couldn't see her. "Yep."

 _"Well, here we were Saturday evening at the farmer's market having mother-daughter time when Deborah's cougar eyes landed on Mr. Sollon Jackson. Their eyes met and suddenly, it was as if I didn't even exist. One minute we were fighting over whether or not we needed sweet peppers, the next my mom was agreeing on a date on some boat with Mr. Jackson, all the while blushing like a fifteen year old teenager. It was the most hysterical thing I've ever seen in my whole entire life."_

Olivia was too busy doubling over and dying of laughter on the floor to hear the clear frustration in Abby's voice. Knowing that she would be just obnoxious if the situation was reversed, Abby waited out Olivia's laughter until it subsided to somewhat of a chuckle.

 _"So here I am on a Saturday night- The Fourth of July of all days, alone in my apartment in my pajamas at eight o'clock, face deep in a tub of double fudge chocolate ice cream; flipping back and forth through bad reality TV shows, wondering what my life had become."_ Abby continued. _"And the thing is Liv, I can't even be mad at her."_ The redhead sympathized _. "I mean you should've seen SJ. For forty-six, he's got those fucking mack truck arms… dude! And welp, he's sexy as all hell. Fuck, I'd leave my mother for him too but that's kind of besides the point. My dad's been dead for what… almost fifteen years? This is the first time in almost fifteen years I've seen my mother give another man the time of day. She has to be lonely."_

"That right there is exactly why you're a great daughter. The fact that you're able to understand that and sympathize." Olivia told Abby. "I'm sure Deborah appreciates your understanding."

 _"She'd better." Abby said, her voice filled with sad._

"I'm sorry, babe." Olivia offered kindly. "What time did she come back?"

 _"Oh, that's the best part!"_ Abby was entirely too happy to provide this piece of information. _"She hasn't come back yet. She called me twice- last night and then again this morning to inform me that she hasn't been murdered with an ax. How fucking nice of her?"_

Olivia laughed just a little bit harder this time. Abby was so good at exaggerating everything. It was such an amazing talent and Olivia wished that she possessed it some days.

"Well, if it's of any consolation to you, I heard my parents fucking like jack rabbits last night." Olivia said.

Now it was Abby's turn to die of laughter. _"Nooo!" She drawled dramatically._

Olivia cold just picture the redhead perched up on something, her jaws going slack and her blue eyes wide the size of saucers. It made Olivia smile.

 _"I hope you gave them a lot of shit for it." Abby said._

"All throughout breakfast." Olivia informed proudly.

 _"My girl!"_ Pride enlaced the redhead's voice and Olivia had a feeling that if the were in close enough proximity, they'd be high-fiving each other.

Abby was the only person missing to make this weekend truly something special.

 _"What else is new in Popeland?" Abby probed further._

Olivia almost forgot the best tea of all and it was with a lot of elation that she poured this piping cup to Abby. "Harrison has a girlfriend!"

 _A gasp. "Stop!" Abby exclaimed._

"… And she's not a skank!" Olivia added.

 _A bigger gasp followed by: "SHUT UP!"_

To further scandalize the whole thing, Olivia dropped the biggest bomb of it all. "He's thinking about putting a ring on it."

No gasping came this time. Just dead silence and for a second, Olivia thought that she was responsible for an impending heart attack.

"Abigail-" Olivia said, currently on high alert.

Seconds passed before Abby spoke again. _"I'm still here." The redhead assured her best friend. "I'm just thinking about how I'm never going to forgive Deborah for making me miss out on this weekend."_

Aw.

Trying to make the redhead feel better, Olivia said: "You didn't really miss much."

Abby gave a scoff and Olivia could just picture her rolling her eyes.

"Fine. So it was a little it eventful."

Though Abby's absence this year truly saddened Olivia, she struggled with feeling guilty. Olivia kept thinking that if Abby had been able to come, she would've never asked Fitz to join her and they would've never have created those memories they did this weekend. She would've never gotten the chance to see how well Fitz interacted with her family and vice versa. With Abby, it's different. In some ways, they're entwined to each other forever because they've known each other so long and Olivia didn't see that bond breaking any time soon. They were sisters and no amount of missing DNA in their veins could tell them other wise.

But Fitz was something different and new at the same time. He meant something different to her in terms of what Abby did. And whether or not Olivia admitted it aloud to anyone yet didn't change the fact that she now thought of Fitz as her family as well. _He deserved her._ He deserved her people and they him. Abby will always be here but this year, she needed to make space for someone else and fate made that possible however necessary. All in all, Olivia felt more glad than guilty.

"Can you coerce Maya into making a pan of her famous baked mac-and-cheese so you can bring it for me?" Abby asked, her tone almost pleading.

Olivia smiled. "I'll tell her." She knew how much the redhead loved her mother's cooking. Hell, it was one of her many weaknesses too.

"Thanks. What time do you think you'll get back tomorrow?"

Olivia wasn't sure. She wasn't in much of a hurry. Unless something changed, she thought that her and Fitz would hit the road again for their return back to the city sometime after lunch. The rush hour traffic might be a bitch but Olivia was convinced that they could power through it and have a lot of fun together.

"I don't know. Maybe late afternoon." Olivia finally replied.

"Okay," Abby yawned over the phone. "Let's schedule our girl's night the coming Saturday."

And so they did just that. The two best friends stayed on the phone together for a little while longer, making plans for when they next see each other again- this time hoping to make it a threesome with Quinn hopefully joining them that evening. They made a few jokes about trivial things before hanging up with I love yous and the promise to talk to each other as soon as they were in the same city again.

…

When Olivia returned back to the living room, both Mrs. Robinson and her husband had gone home and her dad had called it an early night to his study to get some reading in before bed, leaving just her mom, Fitz, Harrison and Cece. Apparently, they were now flipping through album number three because Fitz had enjoyed the first two so much. Olivia honestly hated those pictures. As a baby, she did things and it could be considered cute but she still gets embarrassed when her mom tells the stories. But then there were the pictures of her during that awkward stage. Thirteen through sixteen is what she considered the worst years of her life. She had braces, wore glasses. God hadn't blessed her with the glow up yet. It was weird to see herself now and reflect back how much she had changed both physically and mentally.

The picture that was currently being showed was one of Olivia with extremely long hair. She was sitting on a stool in front of one of her aunts and her hair was parted in half. One part straight, the other straightened to show the difference in comparison to another picture. It was one of those then and now things. When Olivia had gotten braces, she decided that she was going to grow her hair out. It was the only way she thought she could survive having to wear those damnable things for two miserable years. Over those two years, her hair had grown so long, when straightened it flowed like a veil and stopped on her hips. And when curled, it was this huge afro that framed her face perfectly.

"Oh, I love that picture!" Fitz gasped.

Maya had turned the page and it was Olivia post braces and glasses. In that picture she wore a spaghetti strap white sundress with floral details on it and silver keds with purple laces. Her hair was curled straight, falling beautifully at her hips and her nude painted lips has been stretched into the biggest, widest and brightest smile. The awkward phase gone and the glow up extremely on point. It was her Junior year individual pictures. It was also one of Olivia's favorite pictures because Junior year of high school is the year that she felt like God finally listened to her prayers. She was the "It Girl" at Princeton Private Academy and with Abby by her side, they stunted on every bitch at Princeton Private Academy that year because even then, her and Abby did everything together so when she had decided to grow her hair, Abby made the decision to go through the journey of hair growth and surviving through the _"awkward phase"_ with her too. By the end of it, they were hated my many but wanted by plenty! It had all been so well worth it.

"It's a great picture isn't it?" Maya smiled.

Harrison had dozed off into a light sleep on Cece's lap with her fingers tracing the shape of his face. It seemed to have been a long day for everyone.

"Do you mind if I get a copy?" Fitz asked

Olivia almost screamed no from where she stood watching them in the living room but the deep adoration displayed on Fitz's made it kind of difficult to deny him something as simple as a photograph of herself.

"I'm sure that I have smaller sizes of this particular one hidden in a box somewhere." Maya said. "I'll dig e'm out tonight just for you."

Fitz nodded. "Thanks."

Finally, Olivia cleared her throat- announcing her presence. When Fitz raised his head to meet her eyes, he wore a smile.

"Hi, Zelda."

Olivia rolled her eyes, knowing very well why he decided to call her that after seeing her pictures. Zelda is commonly used as a nickname for Rapunzel and in the Disney Pixar movie Tangled, she's kind of famous for her extremely long hair. Olivia wouldn't say that she's every been on Rapunzel's level in hair perfection but she had to admit that the nickname was enchanting even as she acted annoyed.

"If I'm Rapunzel, does that make you Pascal?" Olivia joked.

Both Cece and her mother laughed as Fitz did his best wounded face. Lips poking out, his blue eyes soft with faux-sadness and his hand over his chest.

"What? Pascal was very smart, loyal and sweet!" Olivia said. "Some people might agree those are very good traits to have."

"Did I say Pascal wasn't great?" Fitz argued, raising his eyebrows.

"Your face did." Olivia scoffed.

"I think Pascal was a great little guy." Fitz said as a matter of fact. "And I'm only slightly offended that you compared him to me."

Olivia crossed her arms over her chest, smirking as they stared one another down. "Why's that?"

"Well…" Fitz smacked his lips; pouting again. "I was under the impression that I'd been promoted you know, from being a frog after all these years? I mean I couldn't be Prince Charming but I thought I'd at least made it to Romeo's level."

Olivia burst into laughter. The most beautiful kind. The head thrown back, twinkle in the eyes and deep aching in the belly kind. "Let me live okay, Fitzgerald?! Let me live!" She cried.

Outside of that little ongoing bubble sat Maya and Cece wearing almost identical looks on their faces as they watched the two "best friends" banter. They were witness to a chemistry so deeply personal and intimate between the two that they felt like intruders in that moment in the presence of Olivia and Fitz. For God's sake, as soon as they acknowledged each other's presence, it was almost as if nothing and nobody else mattered. The world be damned. It almost felt rude to be an audience to something so palpable and beautifully unique between two people.

Maya chanced a glance at Cece to see if the young woman could see the same thing that she was seeing also, and when they shared that nod together, they both knew. _These two were destined for each other and anyone or anything that tried to mess with that will be met with and dragged through the inevitable wrath of fate_.

It was then that Maya Pope swore, if these two don't get out of their own way soon enough, she was going to have to take matters into her own hands. Her daughter had tunnel visions at the moment and understandably so, considering that she had just ended a relationship with a man whom she thought she loved and was faithfully committed to for two whole years. Olivia got a pass and Maya believed that in time, when she was ready - because Olivia Pope was just as stubborn as her parents. She dealt with things in her own timing and not one minute before - When she was truly ready, she will act on those feelings if they are still present for her. Though what Maya was curious about was Fitz's hesitation to come right out and say how he feels. Perhaps it's how deeply connected he actually is with Olivia and therefore is able to understand that at the moment, what she needs is time to herself to figure out things for herself instead of plunging head first with no shield and risking getting her head cut off by jumping into something different and never before known to her.

 _Holy shit!_

That might've been the most preposterous thought Maya's ever had but she couldn't help but to question herself. Could two people actually be this crazily entwined to the point of knowing one another's necessities to this extent? It's complete horse-shit, right? Has there even been any scientific research on that kind of stuff and if there has been, can she see the receipts? Maya was absolutely mind-blown. These two have to end up together. The universe couldn't be so cruel as to not let something so meant to be just be.

Shaking her head, Maya snapped out of it and decided to excuse herself. She had to speak to her husband about this. She had to make sure that she wasn't just being biased because she was a mother. After all, don't all mothers want and/or wish for their child/children to actually experience that of once-in-a-lifetime, intense, heart tickling, can't breathe, can't think, can't eat, can't sleep, I-can-but-I-don't-want-to-live-without-you, kind of love? Hell doesn't everyone want that for themselves? Maya had to get a second opinion and Dominic Elliot Pope was her most trusted confidante on this earth. After talking to Dominic, she was gonna ask for a third and fourth opinion just to be entirely sure. But she knew already. She did. Her gut is never wrong.

Maya had to go and the most subtle way she knew how to do that without making Olivia suspicious of her was to tell Fitz that she was going to try and find the picture that she promised him before calling it a night. Maya knew exactly where those pictures was. It wouldn't even take her two minutes to find them but sometimes, lying doesn't have to be this huge, punishable sin. Everyone tells a little white lie every once in a while. She was human and not that much different from everyone else.

"You're welcome to finish looking through the album." Maya said.

Fitz smiled. "Thank you. I think I will." He replied. "Do you mind if I take it up to my room?"

Maya shook her head. "No. Not at all, dear."

"Thank you, ma'am." Fitz repeated once again, nodding.

It was that charm and sweetness that made Maya like him so much. Like an underlying hum that could never be quite heard, but was somehow very melodious and soothing, Fitzgerald lulled people in and once you found him and could hear it- the source of that hum, there was no going back. No sane person would ever dream of such a thing.

Standing up from her spot on the couch, Maya took his much bigger hands in hers and gave it a powerful squeeze for someone as petite as she was. "It's been an absolute delight having you here in my home." Maya said sincerely. "And I know I've already said it several times in the past hours but thanks for dessert. It was wonderful. I hope you don't mind if I ask for a swiping of recipes."

Fitz bowed as best he could still seating. He was more than happy to oblige. "You got it, Maya-Amazing." He said.

Tears threatened to fall from Maya's eyes. Any other person who dared to call her anything other than the name she was given to at birth would've gotten the read of the century from Maya Renee Lewis-Pope. This one though, she didn't mind it so much? How could she when it sounded so endearing, so special and so sweet. Maya-Amazing. Say it fast enough and often enough, it just might start to sound like _my amazing_.

Words failed Maya so instead of trying to put into words what she knows deeply in her heart already, she leaned down and did something so completely out of character to her. Something that she would never have dreamed of doing to any of _the boys_ Olivia's brought home to meet her before. Maya Pope leaned down and pressed a loving maternal kiss to Fitzgerald's forehead because he wasn't just some boy and he certainly wasn't just a bump in the road like the others had been. Fitzgerald Grant was her son-in-law.

Being on the sidelines and witnessing this moment, Olivia's brain was like a machine operating on extreme voltage and she had lost control of it because her emotions was sky-rocketing through the roof at what she jaw saw. Her jaw almost hit the floor when her mother leaned over and kissed Fitz's forehead. Like… what?! WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED? Seriously. What is life?

"Alright children," Maya's back straightened, standing tall again as she moved to the couch that Cece occupied with Harrison still on her lap, softly snoring. "Oh that nephew of mine." Maya shook her head. "Aren't your legs tired, honey?" She asked Celery.

Cece looked down at Harrison and chuckled. It's kind of hard to feel pain when love was literally laying on one's laps. "Would it be weird to say that it's actually kind of comforting?" Cece replied.

Fitz, Maya and Olivia both smiled and shook their heads as if they understood just fine.

"Sonny."

Only few people were ever allowed to call Harrison by that nickname. Actually two people come to think of it and only one of them was still alive. The nickname Sonny was specifically reserved for his Nana Gigi and his aunt Maya so even in his deepest sleep, Harrison could hear it and almost immediately, he was conscious again.

"What?" He mumbled sleepily.

"You have to go to bed, sunshine." Maya said. "Your big head is gonna break the poor girl's thighs."

Harrison groaned in annoyance. He was actually having a good dream. A great one if he dared said so himself and it featured him, Cece in one of the many sexy outfits she owns and a smoking red race car. Only his aunt could ruin such a good thing for him.

"Fine." Harrison sat up a little bit too quickly which caused him a bit of temporary dizziness.

"Careful babe." Cece jumped quickly to his aid.

Most men would feel like a little bitch about that small little gesture, deeming it as almost emasculating but not Harrison Wright. This was just another proof to him that he could trust this girl who chose him and who he chose in return.

He leaned over, still very much half asleep and pressed a sleepy kiss to Cece's plump pink lips. "Bye. I love you."

A blush creeped up on the girl's cheek, not really used to this much affection from Harrison being displayed in front of people that were family to him. This was kind of one of those first for them and inside, Cece was bursting of joy secretly. "Love you too. Bye!"

Harrison attempted to get up a second time only to almost fall back on his ass, still disoriented from sleep. It was then that Fitz decided to step in and offer a helping hand. He actually liked Harrison and he'd like to see the man make it up the stairs without any injuries.

He gathered the photo album under his arms before wrapping Harrison's arms around his neck. "Alright buddy. Let's go."

"You're my hero, Fitz." Harrison said. Then he kissed Fitz's cheek.

Okay, so Harrison was either extremely drunk or sleepy but either way, they were there already, deep into the bromance of things.

Fitz laughed softly to himself as he guided Harrison up the stairs. "I'm happy to be of service, Captain."

"Bye, Lili!" Harrison shouted to Olivia almost at the top of the stairs.

"Aren't they so cute?" Maya clapped her hands together, a grin on her face. "Alright, I'm gonna go now. You beautiful babies have a great rest of your night. These old, tired bones of mine however need rest." She kissed Cece's cheeks before marching towards Olivia who was staring at her with a look. Like a _"mother, what the fuck are you on right now,"_ kind of look. Maya almost couldn't resist rolling her eyes. Olivia wouldn't be her daughter if she didn't question her behavior for the past few minutes. But to be coy, or if pushed into a corner, she could always say it was the wine at dinner- although that was almost three hours ago. _Oops. Better come up with a better white lie._

"You kids don't stay up too late, okay?" Out of the corner of her eyes, Maya saw Cece nod. "Any later and y'all won't make it to breakfast." At that, she gathered Olivia in her arms for a goodnight hug and though Olivia obliged, Maya could feel her trying to take her temperature in a not so very subtle way, although Maya could bet she thought she was. "Oh stop that." She popped her on the hand with two fingers.

"Can you blame me?" Olivia questioned. "Are you on something? Was it the wine? Are you alright?"

Maya shook her head, amused. "I love you, Olivia. Goodnight!" She pecked her daughter's cheek and was on her way before she was further questioned.

Maya only made it to the fourth step and she could hear Olivia still questioning her very odd behavior tonight. Though, she really wouldn't be her only daughter if she didn't get the last word. When she'd gotten to the sixth step, Olivia shouted to her: "Goodnight! Don't engage in any sexicular activities with Dominic tonight! Remember those old bones need rest so y'all don't have the energy to be fucking like it's nineteen-ninety-nine!"

Maya almost tripped off the steps laughing too damn hard. And since she can be about as much of an asshole as her daughter can, she decided to annoy the living hell out of her. "Does oral count?"

The bloody murder scream that followed suit told Maya that she had won that round. She'd be sleeping well tonight for many reasons.

"She has no chill!" Olivia complained to Cece. "I can't believe she just said that."

Cece was too busy dying of laughter on the couch. She liked the Lewis crowd. A whole lot.

888

About an hour later, Olivia retired to her room. She was surprised to find Fitz comfortably lounging in her bed with a pillow behind his back however, she wasn't all that much surprised to him really finishing looking through the photo album like the dork he is.

"Hi Zelda." He greeted upon her entrance without taking his eyes off the picture he was looking.

Olivia briefly went to the adjoined bathroom to perform her nightly routine of teeth brushing, flossing and moisturizing. She tied her hair in a bun on top of her head after slipping on her pajamas. Deeming herself ready for bed, she walked back into the room and this time, Fitz had finally finished looking through the photos and she had the impression that he might've stolen a few favorites to keep to himself. Olivia found that she didn't really mind the idea of him having her pictures as much anymore.

Pushing the covers back, she climbed into bed and fixed her pillow before turning to face Fitz on her side.

"Hi, Romeo." She smiled.

He did too. Brightly.

And for a few minutes, those were the only two words settled between them.

"Good day?" Fitz asked a bit later.

Olivia nodded against her pillow, hand curled at her chin. "Great day." She replied.

"Yeah?"

Another nod. "Yeah. I went to the ranch with my dad and rode on my horse for the first time in a while." She couldn't keep the smile on her lips at bay when she told him about her afternoon.

"I got your mom very tipsy on bloody maries and Mrs. Robinson taught me how to dance. Kind-of-sort-of." He grinned, also giving her a recap of his time apart from her. "I like your family." Fitz admitted. "They're good people."

Olivia smiled. "They're alright, aren't they?"

"They're more than alright." Fitz said, pulling her into his arms.

Olivia didn't fight it. She just came to him because that's what felt natural. His chest served as the best pillow that unfortunately no money could buy and Olivia's eyes shut as she breathed into his scent. _Good. So good. If Heaven has a smell, this was it_.

Stretching his free arm, Fitz his arm out and flicked off the lamp on the nightstand. He took a deep breath and let serenity wash over him. _Good. So good. So heavenly._

Few minutes later, "I'm driving The General back to New York and don't you dare try and touch that radio, Fitzgerald."

The ugly laugh that escaped Fitz was unstoppable. He thought she had fallen asleep only for her to utter something this hilariously serious when it was so dark and quiet in the room, a dropped pin could be heard.

… and The General. Fitz had always secretly been one of those people who fantasized about naming their car. Could you fault him? The truck was his baby so obviously, he'd want to name it but he always felt as though the car was more a she. Like he'd refer to it as: she has a pretty sick engine. She has nice wheels. But hearing Olivia refer to it as The General felt so fitting and final. Like that's the perfect name for the car. It's twenty-sixteen. A she can be The General as well. Screw sexism.

Fitz chuckled as he shook his head. "Done and done."

A sigh from her let him know that they were in agreement and as such, they were set to fall asleep. Warm, safe, and content.

"Goodnight, Ace." Olivia mumbled.

…

…

…

"Goodnight, Zelda."

…

…

…

"Hmmm," Olivia sighed. "I think I liked Fireball better. It was starting to grow on me." She shrugged.

Fitz smiled. He was in such deep shit and he saw no way out. How fucking sway.

…

…

…

 _"… Goodnight, Fireball."_

888

The next day when Olivia awoke, she wasn't too surprised to find Fitz gone again. Knowing that he was probably just downstairs, cooking up a storm in her parent's kitchen again gave her a surprisingly calm peace of mind.

Now, flash forward twenty minutes later when Olivia went downstairs for breakfast to find Fitz nowhere in sight in her parent's massive mansion that they call a cottage.

"He dragged your father and Harrison for a run this morning." Her mom informed her after Olivia searched every room in the damn house.

"Oh…" Olivia said.

She must've looked like a crazy person opening and slamming doors but truth is, she didn't really have an excuse to get herself out of that one so "Oh" would have to do.

"You two are really attached to the hips, aren't ya?" Her mom hands her a cup of freshly brewed tea exactly how she likes it before signaling her to sit down.

"Where's Cece?"

"She's still upstairs in her room." Maya replied. "She was down for a few minutes earlier but she went back to finish a work related thing on her laptop."

Olivia nodded. "And Mrs. Robinson?"

"She sends her goodbyes." Maya answered. "She took the day off so she could give us time together."

Olivia was seriously bummed. Mrs. Robinson and her husband didn't feel like employees of her mom and dad. After this many years, it certainly stopped feeling as such when they became more of an extended family. Older aunts and uncles and everyone in the Lewis family viewed them as such. Anything other than that would have disappointed Nana Gigi.

Maya ached to ask Olivia about Fitz. Their relationship and deep connection to each other but just like she knew last night that Olivia wasn't ready, she knew it now too. A few hours of sleep didn't make a damn difference although she wished it had. So instead of pushing it, Maya thought best to make the last few hours they had with each other before she left worth another memory she will cherish close to her heart for the rest of both their lives.

"Wanna help me bake my famous mac-and-cheese?" She asked.

Olivia heaved a deep breath and threw her head back in relief. "I thought you'd never ask, Maya-amazing."

Whoever said nicknames can't be catchy?

Maya chuckled as they both stood up together. _"Come on, smarty-pants."_

…

Four large hotel, disposable pans of mac-and-cheese under the oven later, the boys returned from what seemed to have been a goddamn marathon judging by their breathlessness and profuse loss of body fluid.

"What y'all two hooligans tried to give my ol' man a heart attack?!" Olivia yelled at both Fitz and Harrison as she tossed bottles of water at both of them. "And dad, what the hell were you thinking? You're like eighty!" Olivia scolded as she lead her father to a nearby chair to sit his aging ass down.

Perched up on his weak knees, Harrison poured the bottle of water over his head in the middle of the kitchen. His aunt could body slam him or whoop his ass later but for now, he thought death might come soon after this goddamn workout Fitzgerald Grant had put him through. The man swore up and down that he despises running but for some reason, unknown to Harrison, he was the only one out of the three of them that didn't seem close to a heart attack.

His calculations are saying he's been played.

"Dominic don't test my ass on this beautiful Monday morning!" Maya also scolded, passing Olivia a cool towel. "Fuck around and have a heart attack, I'll revive you just to kill you myself."

Dominic almost coughed up a lung trying to laugh at his wife's threats while still out of breath. Meanwhile, Harrison had completely given up on life and decided to lay on the pool of water on the floor. Fitz came in his line of sight and Harrison frowned as the world spun with him.

"Man, how the hell are you still standing?"

Olivia rolled her eyes. "You idiots! He does this like every day. He's used to it." She smacked Harrison with the towel.

"Ow! What the fuck, Liv?!" Harrison cried.

The stingy feel of a wet, heavy towel on his bare flesh was not something he wanted to feel after running ten miles in this heat outside. Not fucking cool.

Olivia did it again. "Respect your elders." She said.

Harrison kicked. "You're like two days older than me!"

She did it again. "Don't be a liar."

"Owww! Auntie make her stop!" Harrison pleaded.

"You should get up dude." Fitz said bemusedly munching on a power granola bar as he sipped on water. "You're gonna cramp up real bad. Come up. Up and at e'm, sir." He snapped his fingers and turned to Dominic. "You too, Dom."

The look he was met by when he addressed a still struggling for breath Dominic was enough to send Fitz running in heels- something he's never considered doing before but with Olivia seething "I will murder you, Fitzgerald!" at him, he was pretty sure there was about a small percentage of things he wouldn't do in order to get as far away from her as possible.

Long after Fitz dipped up the stairs, taking the steps by threes to go shower, Harrison still resided on the floor. His breathing was back to normal and for the most part, he had cooled down but it was his damn legs he couldn't feel. They were so numb!

"Celery come save me!" He yelled. "No man should ever have to suffer this much." He mumbled to himself.

"Oh, grow the fuck up!" Olivia smacked him with the towel again.

888

The last few hours in the Hampton could only be described as bittersweet.

After packing and having a late brunch, Olivia had snuck off to the garden with Maya and Cece to pick fresh, organic fruits while the men stayed cooped up inside drinking expensive bourbon and listening to old records in her dad's man-cave.

By twelve-thirty, the bags were packed, two and a half trays of mac-and-cheese were loaded into Fitz's truck as well as their snacks for the road. And then when the time came for them to leave, the river of tears started.

"Oh, shit." Olivia cursed, resigning herself to that being a curse. Every goddamn time! "Mom, don't cry."

"I wouldn't if you'd bothered to visit more often." Her mother replied hysterically.

Her mom always made their goodbyes seem so final as if they lived on the other side of the world from each other instead of the three hours drive that it was.

"Jesus…" Olivia mumbled under her breath. "Come here, mom."

She gathered the petite woman into her arms in a hug. Olivia let her hands run up and down her mother's back in this soothing motion as she looked at her dad with sympathetic eyes.

"Sorry." Olivia mouthed to her dad.

Dominic winked at her. "S'okay, puppy." He mouthed back.

If there was one thing the two had in common and also disagreed about was the sight of Maya crying. It made their hearts hurt and at the moment, it wasn't really making Olivia feel any better that she was the reason for those damn tears now.

"Look mom," She pulled away to look at her doppelganger. "I'm gonna make a promise to you and work really hard to keep it okay?" Maya nodded. "Stop crying first, though."

"I swear after twenty four years, I still can't decide whose daughter you are." Her mother complained as she wiped the tears.

Olivia smiled. "I used my chips accordingly but I'm still a mix of the both of you." She said. "Anyways, I'm gonna try to show up here again sometime at the end of this month. Or maybe early August. Definitely before teaching starts again, but I promise it won't be during a holiday. Sound fair to you?"

Maya shrugged. Why did her only baby girl have to grow up? She swears that every time Olivia comes home for a visit and leaves days later, it feels like she's running off to college all over again. Maya didn't like it.

"Weekly calls are back on. It's the only way I'll compromise." Oh she could play dirty too.

Olivia groaned. "Fine, woman. Fine!"

In the back Fitz, Cece and Harrison chuckled. Olivia threw the three of them the middle finger as she hugged her mother again.

"Don't worry, Maya-amazing. I'll make sure she keeps that promise." Fitz said.

At that, Maya let go of Olivia to turn to Fitz. "Oh Fitzgerald." She said, absolutely astonished by the young man. "It was so good to have you here, honey. You're welcomed back anytime, alright?"

Fitz swallowed the lump in his throat that formed as a result of those kind words and such deep acceptance of who he was. "Thank you, Mrs. Pope. I definitely will." He promised.

"Great." Maya nodded before pulling him for a hug.

On to the side, Olivia was saying goodbye to her father and it was a lot less dramatic compared to Maya's - though she knew the emotions ran probably at the same level. Dominic just knew how to get a lid on his better. Something about being a man or whatever but Olivia knew later, as soon as she left, they both will be crying together about her leave in each other's arms. Her parents were big saps and babies that way.

"I love you, daddy." Olivia smiled.

"I love you too, puppy." Dominic replied.

After a lot of long hugs and kisses to her parents, the cousins finally said goodbye promising to keep in better contact in New York. Olivia made plans with Cece for the upcoming Friday for a shoe shopping spree date at DSW. They exchanged all possible contacts with each other. Harrison and Fitz did the same. Fitz promised to give Harrison a discount at the gym if he survived three rounds in the boxing ring with him. Harrison ever the so confident type thought he could take Fitz on, not knowing that he may just as well have signed off his death sentence.

"See you on the flip side."

Once the cars were boarded and Olivia's parents were waiving at them, it started to dawn on Olivia just how overwhelming this all really kinda felt. After two wholesome days home and getting into the grove of things and being around her parents again, she understood the bitter-sweet feeling. She felt it too.

"I love you, mama!" She yelled out the window.

"Till the sun don't shine, baby!" Maya shouted back.

And so they left, passing miles of beautiful landscapes as they left home behind. One hour in, Fitz made the mistake to touch the radio and so to torture him, they listened to Lemonade the whole entire ride. Track three and four were Olivia's two personal favorites. By the time they got back home in New York, Fitz knew Hold Up by heart.

He'd definitely be down to doing this again soon.


	7. Chapter 7

_Sometime after the Hampton..._

* * *

Olivia was lazing around her apartment painting her nails when her phone started vibrating and ringing on the floor next to her. Taking a brief glance at it while being cautious not to mess up her toes, a smile grew on her face when she saw Fitz's name flashing on the screen. _Ace._

Sliding over the green button, she put him on speaker and answered.

"Fireball!" His voice boomed through the speakers of the phone.

"Well someone sounds excited." Olivia teased.

"I am excited. Very excited." Fitz replied.

Olivia could tell that he was at the gym because she could hear the machines working and loud metal music blasting from the overhead speakers of his fitness center.

"What gives?" She asked.

"Two questions..." He prompted, still cheery.

"Shoot." Olivia replied.

"You got any plans tonight?" Fitz asked.

"Uh," Olivia stuttered. "Abby and I were gonna go check out this new little French Bistro on 44th. Why, what's up?"

"Tonight is my annual Gumbo Night and when I tell you that you don't wanna miss it..."

"I've never had Gumbo before." Olivia told him.

"What?!" Fitz exclaimed. "Seriously?"

"Seriously." Olivia replied.

"But your mother is southern." Fitz said.

Olivia chuckled. Of course he'd remember something like that. "Yes she is, but she grew up in London. She's not your traditional southern belle." She answered. "I think my Nana used to make it when I was little but not too often."

"Damn," Fitz mumbled. "Now you absolutely have to come. Your life is about to be forever changed!" He drawled dramatically.

Olivia couldn't stop laughing. He was honestly the best human being to ever grace the face of the earth.

"Though I really do want to come and have my life changed, I still have a hot redhead to worry about. We've planned this for weeks. I can't cancel on her."

"Then don't." Fitz said. He was smiling. She knew that much. "The more the merrier. Bring the redhead. I've yet to meet the girl I share you with. Just tell her there's been a slight change in plans. Instead of having coq au vin and baby red potatoes for a hundred and something dollars at some fancy restaurant; you can come to mi casa where you'll be having free, delicious Gumbo. Some might say that's a pretty damn good deal."

"You are shameless." Olivia laughed. "Convince me some more."

"There's gonna be wine." That was the way to get her. She loves wine. "And oh... The bonus: me! I'm gonna be there and you get to see my handsome face. I know you miss it."

Olivia was kind of glad that he couldn't see her because she was cheesing so hard, she was afraid her face was gonna be stuck with that stupid smile permanently.

Sighing, she feigned nonchalance and replied: "I suppose I could make an appearance."

"That's all I ask." He said.

"Should I bring anything?" Olivia asked.

"Uh, no. Just your pretty self is satisfactory." Fitz replied charmingly.

* * *

Fitz left work earlier than his shift was supposed to end. After announcing to his colleagues that Gumbo Night had come earlier this year and extending the annual invitation to them, he left to go do some much needed last minute shopping.

Gumbo Night was something that he used to do with Voight. And once a year, to honor the old man's memory, he hosted this night where he just had company and tried to have a good time because sometimes, a person just needed to freaking feel like they had an upper hand on the universe. Gumbo Night is also not normally hosted until the start of the fall season but after the whole fiasco that happened during the weekend at Olivia's parents' cottage, Fitz figure he could do something that could take her out of whatever deep dark hole she had fallen back into after seeing her asshole of an ex. And when Stephen brought up missing his Gumbo, Fitz thought it was the perfect opportunity to gather all his friends together and make a night out of it. Even though he knew that Olivia left the Hampton seemingly happy despite Edison showing his ass, he still couldn't shake the feeling that something was to come. More than anything though, he just really wanted Olivia's company. It's already been almost a week since they've seen each other.

So now here he was, pulling up in front of his loft and unloading a huge box of groceries from the back of his truck.

Two trips in and out, he was able to bring in everything he needed to start Gumbo Night. Beers were being kept fresh in a cooler for his guests, and three bottles of the finest wine money could buy were being kept cool in the fridge for his Fireball.

He moved around some stuff in his living room to create more space as he was trying to turn the room into a game room. The options of cards, dominoes, darts and trivia were given to keep his guests entertained. And with that handled, he was back in the kitchen. Hands washed, apron on, Fitz set out to start prepping to make this year's Gumbo the best yet.

* * *

"...Change of plans." Olivia told Abby over the phone as she rummaged through her closet; trying to decide on her outfit for the evening.

"What does that mean exactly?" The redhead asked. "We planned this for weeks, Liv. And tonight is not just us."

"Oh shit!" Olivia exclaimed when she remembered Abby's new friend and co-worker.

Not long ago, they discussed doing a girls' night out so they could all get familiar with each other and she couldn't believe that she already forgot all about that conversation.

"You forgot, didn't you?" Abby said, her tone bordering on disappointment.

 _Damn it!_ "Nope. Totally didn't forget." Olivia said. "Look, I'm not cancelling. I'm just saying change of venue, babe."

"Okay." Abby sighed, trying to be open of the new suggestion. "Where to?"

"Gumbo Night." Olivia simply replied.

"Gumbo Night?" Abby questioned, a frown in her voice. "What is that?"

"Damn if I know." Olivia answered.

"Seriously? Just so you know, I'm judging you right now." The redhead said. Then, "Hold on. Give me a sec."

"Ight..." Olivia put the phone on speaker on her makeup desk and dragged a chair in front of her vanity mirror. She sat down and pulled her curly hair up, contemplating which hairstyle she could go with for the night.

"Siri, what's gumbo?" Olivia heard Abby say.

"And yet you judge me for not knowing. How dare you?" She said playfully.

"Oh! I see." Abby said after a few seconds. "It looks interesting. Where exactly is this Gumbo Night happening?"

"A friend's house." Olivia replied.

Not once since she and Fitz met had she mentioned anything about him to Abby. In a way, she thought that by not saying anything, she was delaying the inevitable. That the seconds that somebody else knew about the chemistry and deep friendship that they shared, they wouldn't be them anymore. They wouldn't be Fitz and Livvie or Fireball and Ace anymore. Olivia loved having him all to herself so she never said anything. And maybe that does sound a little ridiculous considering most of her family met Fitz not too long ago but that's just how she felt. Olivia wasn't ready to share him with everyone yet. But she figured tonight was as any good a time to finally introduce her two best friends to each other since neither of them was going nowhere. To say that she was anxious about that would be an understatement but she was going to try and relax and let the dices roll on their own for once.

Sure Fitz and Abby were total polar opposites of each other. That didn't mean they wouldn't get along.

"A friend's house?" Abby repeated. "You're not gonna even elaborate? Do I know this friend?"

"You will tonight." Olivia replied. "So are you in?"

Abby sighed. "Yeah. Whatever. I guess."

"So indecisive." Olivia teased. "Anyways, let's all meet at Peggy's for one drink first before we head to Gumbo Night."

"Sounds good." Abby agreed.

And so it was set. Olivia was crossing her fingers for all to go well.

...

Typical for a Saturday evening, Peggy's was busy when Olivia walked through the doors. Instantly she was met by a large group of people sitting so close to each other, a needle couldn't fit between them. Their gazes were solely fixed on the large screen TV, and everybody was holding hands and holding their breath.

It was baseball night and The Mets made it to the World Series Finals for the first time in a few decades. This was definitely important.

Everybody in New York City was a Yankees fan by default but the minority of New Yorkers that were true Mets fans were truly devoted to that team and tonight, there were quite a few of them gathered at Peggy's. And right now, The Mets were one home-run down and they were batting.

Olivia scanned the overcrowded bar for her redhead best friend before she felt her phone vibrating in her clutch.

She unzipped the small purse and retrieved the phone from it.

One new notification popped up, indicating that she had a text message. It was from Abby.

 **Running five minutes late, babe. I promise I'll be there soon.**

She shot the redhead a quick response back. _Okay._

Then she pulled back an empty stool behind the bar and waved her hand to the bartender to get started on a drink.

...

It was fifteen minutes later and a tied game between The Mets and The Royals when the redhead finally walked in the bar with a young brunette tailing behind her. On cue, Olivia stood up from the stool and met the two women half way.

"So sorry." Abby said remorsefully. "Did I mention that Quinn was still learning her way around? Not to mention that traffic was a bitch." She explained as she pulled Olivia into her arms for a hug.

"It's fine." Olivia waved a dismissive hand as her eyes met the brunette behind Abby.

 _She was young._ Olivia thought. Just on a wild guess, Olivia could say she was at least two years older than Quinn and the girl was absolutely gorgeous. She was covered in tattoos from head to toe and she wasn't afraid to put them all on display. Olivia smiled. Now she knew why Abby took such a like to the young girl so quickly. Same coin, different sides.

"Oh, how rude of me." Abby caught herself quickly after the brief moment of silence that settled between the three of them. "Olivia meet Quinn. Quinn, meet Olivia- my other half." She said, all the while waving her hands back and forth between the two ladies. "Now let's get some shots."

Both Olivia and Quinn broke into laughter as they watched Abby stroll to the bar.

No words were exchanged between the two, but Olivia knew that without a doubt that she liked Quinn. If anyone could put up with Abby's crazy ass, they deserved to be liked. So they had that silent understanding between them.

Six shots of patron and limes were delivered to them before they all took a seat. They each took two.

Lime in hand, Abby raised one shot to make a toast. "Cheers to girls night." She said. Looking up at the flat screen TV streaming the baseball game, she added: "The Mets, bad bitches... and New York."

Always cheers to New York.

Olivia chuckled, looking at Quinn who shrugged. "Cheers!"

So they threw back their shots; squealing when the aftermath of a burn settled behind their throats before they bit on their lime.

"Another round please!" Abby shouted at the bartender across the room. Once she confirmed that her order was heard, the redhead turned her attention back to her friends.

"Why are you so jumpy?" Olivia asked.

"No reason." Abby replied quickly and Olivia shot up her eyebrows at her. She sighed defeatedly. "I don't know!" She huffed. "I just want you guys to like each other."

Olivia and Quinn looked at each other, both frowning. "We like each other." They both said in unison.

"You do?" Abby questioned, releasing a breath she didn't realize she had been holding. "Oh. Thank God. It would've been really awkward if you didn't."

Their second round came. Each took two shots again.

"You look hot." Abby said, urging Olivia to twirl so she could admire her whole outfit.

She looked really hot. She was vibrant in a short black and white open back jumpsuit romper that left just enough cleavage to snap a few heads back. She stood six inches taller in a sexy pair of single strapped, leopard suede heels. With her large collection of MAC makeup, she went for a very smokey, yet dramatic look that made the chocolate brown of her eyes shine brighter and her lips were painted a dark shade of matte plum. All of her curly hair was swept up in a high messy bun on top of her head, with the exception of a few locks of straight, trimmed bangs that hung against her forehead.

Hot didn't cover what she looked like.

She looked unapologetically beautiful with a touch of fierceness. Her youth showed in the illuminating glow of her skin and style.

"I'm absolutely in love with your lipstick." Quinn complimented. "Unfortunately, I don't think I'm bold enough to go past a few shades of dark red. Yet."

Olivia bowed in a ladylike manner as best as she could without busting her ass off those sky high heels. "Thank you." She said. "You guys slay me though."

Abby's short hair was probably the best thing she could have done for herself in Olivia's opinion. Now it just seems that any look was absolutely perfect on the redhead with her chic pixie cut. And lately, she's been slaying the rocker hipster look down to a T.

From head to toe, the redhead looked flawless. The little bit of hair she still had was pushed purposely and messily to one side. Her makeup was a few shades lighter than Olivia's and simpler. She had opted for just a touch of bronze eye shadow countered with black winged eyeliner; three coats of mascara and nude painted lips. Her whole outfit though was a knockout.

She wore a Rolling Stones tank top tucked loosely inside a pair of leather shorts that showcased her long legs and her very fascinating, colorful tattoos. Sky high in a pair of lace-up, open toe pumps - a long gold necklace and a brown leather jacket completed the redhead's look.

"You do rocker-hipster justice." Quinn said.

"I know right?" Abby chuckled. "The only thing I'm missing is the faded, hooded eyes."

To that they all laughed again.

"I like your piercings." Olivia said.

Out of the three of them, Quinn was probably dressed the most casual but she was still so effortlessly beautiful and Olivia was seriously considering adopting her style.

She almost had little to no makeup at all, safe for a touch of eyeliner and cherry red painted lips. She wore her dark, shoulder length in beach waves. Her outfit was simple yet still fashionable. The brunette had on a pair loose-ripped boyfriend jeans that were rolled up at the ankles and matching those was a simple black and white strapped pattern crop top and white converse. The flannel shirt that she brought with her was wrapped around her waist in a knot and she looked her twenty-two years of age. All her tattoos were on full display, specially the ones on her arms and stomach. Though Olivia adored her belly button piercing, it was the little hoop in her nose that drove the girl crush home.

 _QUEENS!_

Now that they'd gotten all the compliments out of the way, Olivia checked her phone to see that seven o'clock was approaching fast. She threw back her second shot and tapped at the white gold Movado watch on her wrist.

"We gotta go." She told the girls.

She promised Fitz that she'd be there at seven and between the evening traffic and the hustle-bustle of the weekend, she'd be lucky if she made it across town to Fitz's house in the next fifteen minutes.

"Right. Gumbo Night." Abby said. "There better be booze at that thing."

Olivia smiled. "There will be. I promise."

"Good. Let's go get shitfaced elsewhere."

Abby paid the tab on their drinks and as soon as they walked out into the New York City evening, they were hit by a cool breeze of fresh and pure summer air. Within minutes, Quinn succeeded in flagging down a yellow cab and the three ladies hopped in the back of the taxi as Olivia recited her destination to the driver.

888

When she was three minutes out, Olivia shot Fitz a text message to tell him that she was close. When she arrived at his place, Fitz was already outside, sitting on his steps waiting for her.

Fitz's breath was knocked out of his lungs as soon as Olivia hopped out of that cab. He was aware of the two friends she brought with her and although they each looked equally as beautiful, only one of them had the ability to make Fitz's heart thump as hard as it was at the moment. That lucky lady was Olivia Pope.

Ten feet away from Fitz's door steps, all three ladies froze to admire the panty dropping, clit-throbbing hotness that was Fitzgerald Grant. He'd recently gotten an undercut haircut, so all his gorgeous chocolate curls were pushed up into this puffy cloud and to add to his fainting sexiness, he spotted a five o'clock shadow on his cheeks. In a simple pair of dark jeans and a round neck light blue t-shirt, he shouldn't be so swoon worthy. But you couldn't tell that to Abby or Olivia. Even Quinn who usually goes out of her way to ignore the male population couldn't help but appreciate the man's looks. He was damn hot.

"Two questions..." Abby mumbled to Olivia under her breath.

Already, Olivia was visibly shrinking. Abby was one of those friends with no filters. You couldn't take her anywhere but you also couldn't get rid of her.

"Yes, gingersnap?" Olivia inquired.

"Is this the friend you were being coy about earlier?" The redhead asked.

Olivia rolled her eyes. She was looking at Fitz and God bless him, he was just standing there with his hands in his pockets, waiting patiently. He really should not do that because his mac-truck sized arms only flexed which caused him to look ten times sexier. And then to further put all three women six feet under, he smiled. Like why did he have to do that? He was too damn much! Too much.

"Yes." She answered Abby's question.

The redhead nodded. "Please tell me you're fucking him." Abby said.

"That wasn't a very subtle way to ask that question but for your information, no I am not fucking him as you so crassly put it." Olivia couldn't resist the urge to roll her eyes again.

"You're wrong for this." Abby replied. "So wrong."

Olivia decided to end that conversation right then and there by dragging Abby behind her who then dragged Quinn.

"Welcome. I'm glad you guys could make it." Fitz greeted.

He was going to totally ignore the fact that they were undoubtably whispering about him ten feet away a few seconds prior. He wanted to make a great first impression on Olivia's friends so he thought it was best if he pretended to not notice Abby just drooling over him seconds ago.

Abby's greeting went a little differently though. "You got any brothers? Sisters, cousins? Uncles, perhaps? I'll take anyone from your breed."

Olivia wished the earth would open up and swallow her hole. She couldn't even be mad because this was Abigail in her true colors. Shameless, no filters and a fire cracker. This was her best friend.

While Olivia was wishing for the power of invisibility, Quinn was trying her hardest not to laugh while Fitz wore a smirk on his face.

"You must be Abby." Fitz said. "I've heard so much about you. I'm Fitzgerald Grant."

"I've heard nothing about you." Abby said in response, side eyeing Olivia. "But it's a pleasure to meet you, Fitzgerald." She was courteous and well mannered for all of two seconds before the fire cracker in her was back. She wasn't a redhead for no reason. "So about your family tree..."

Fitz couldn't stop smirking. He liked this girl. His ideal sister would be a lot like Abigail Whelan in personality if he had one. It hasn't even been five minutes yet but Fitz decided he liked the redhead. She had this fierceness about her, not to mention her cool sense of style, her mannerism and her no fuck to give attitude. Fitz had a feeling that they were going to get along just fine and have a kick out of making Olivia miserable together. It was going to be fun.

"I'm an only child. Parents are dead and as far as I'm concerned, I have no living relatives." Fitz informed her.

This was the real test and Abigail Whelan passed with flying colors. She didn't even blink when Fitz mentioned his dead parents. Most people usually wince or start to give him a look that resembled pity or sympathy. Not Abby. Instead, her face just turned into a sad frown before she blurted out: "Well that fucking sucks for me."

Fitz chuckled. "However, I do have a few friends inside who fair pretty well in looks."

"They look anything like you?" Abby asked.

Olivia continued to want to die or disappear.

Fitz shook his head. "No one looks like me, Red." He replied.

"Damn it." Abby cursed. She seemed to have bounced back quickly from that blow. Of course no one looked like this tall glass of orgasm. So much for her luck. "Hopefully your friends look better." She then said. "You got any alcoholic beverage in there?"

Fitz nodded, a smirk still playing on his lips. "Of course I do." He answered.

Abby whooshed past him, still dragging Quinn behind her seeing as though their arms were woven together. In passing, Quinn and Fitz did their very brief introduction which went a lot like the brunette screaming her name to Fitz and him yelling back; "Nice to meet you!"

"I like you." Abby told Fitz before busting through the doors of his apartment.

And then there were two.

One however was still dying of second hand embarrassment. Olivia swears that Abigail Whelan lived to make her life miserable sometimes.

Chuckling, Fitz didn't even bother to ask or say anything to Olivia. He simply walked towards her and pulled her into his arms. Once she was safely tucked in there, he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her forehead. Olivia melted back against his chest and screamed. Though, she was secretly happy to be here. In Fitz's arms. Just as they were.

 _And God... he smelled good!_

...

Inside Fitz's apartment, they spent about five minutes on introductions. Olivia met Fitz colleagues who went by the names of: Jake Ballard, Stephen Finch, and Charlie Peterson. All three of them seemed like cool people and one in particular hadn't been able to tear his eyes off a certain redhead from the minute their hands clasped together. Mentally, Olivia did a happy dance. If this night would entailed a lot of misery for her; courtesy of Abigail Whelan, she knew exactly what chip she would play. Stephen Finch was it and by the looks of it, Olivia wouldn't be surprised if the two left together after the get-together to get more acquainted.

In the kitchen, Abby raided Fitz's cabinets for all the alcohol there was. She decided she was going to be a bartender for the night and no one could stop the redhead. No one wanted to. Elsewhere, the guys were still in the living room, going crazy over a UFC paperview game. Apparently, it was a match of champions judging by all the illegal bets they were placing with each other.

"Who'd you bet on?" Quinn asked Fitz, having watched the entire madness go down at the entrance of the living room with a drink in hand.

Fitz faced the brunette with a smile. "The underdog of course." He replied.

Quinn nodded interestingly. "You mean the guy that's getting his ass kicked right now?"

Unless the match gets rigged, the dude Fitz betted on had no chance in winning the title tonight so Quinn couldn't understand why Fitz would willingly bet two hundred dollars with his moron friends.

"Everything in life is like a game of chess, Quinn." Fitz told the young brunette. "The anticipation lasts until the very last second. Just gotta have a little faith in the underdog." And then he walked away, leaving Quinn more confused but also intrigued.

The next second, the brunette found herself joining the boys in their madness. She even wagered a twenty on the guy getting his ass kicked. He'd better win because Quinn Perkins didn't like losing.

...

Following the UFC match, everyone settled around the living room for a game of trivia as gumbo simmered in a huge pot on the stove for a few more minutes. The trivia game was a Boys vs. Girls affair and it's needless to say that the three women came out victorious. But of course, it wouldn't be the battle of sexist if Jake Ballard hadn't opened his mouth and said that his team let the girls win because it was the gentleman thing to do despite the fact that Olivia, Abby and Quinn had gotten most if not all of the trivia question correct.

At eight thirty, gumbo was served with a side of white rice soon after the trivia game by none other than the host himself. At first, both Abby and Quinn were a bit skeptical to try the new dish despite its appraisal by everybody else. Fitz promised them that he would order take outs for them if they found that they didn't like the dish. But it never came to that because after the first spoonful, the two women were sold as moans of delight escaped their lips. Conversation around the table flowed effortlessly as they sipped on top notch wine. It was a great affair and Fitz could hardly contain the smile on his lips at the turn out of the event. He loved having these people in his home and he loved the carefree smiles on their lips. This was a win in his book.

After gumbo, which had been delicious, everyone retired back to the living room once again where they sipped more drinks and fell into easy conversation. At some point, the guys started a whole debacle about sports. It was cue for the women to exit then - volunteering for cleaning up duty because they wanted no part of this heated argument that had come out of nowhere.

"He has such a great ass." Abby admired Stephen Finch from afar while sipping on a glass of wine. "Where do they even make them?"

He was playing darts in the living room with Charlie and with his back to her, Abby was afforded a great view of his body. He was something straight out of a magazine. At six feet tall, he was built, his shoulders broad and muscular and he made just standing and moving around look sexy. Abby couldn't be blamed. She was in deep lust.

Olivia chuckled. She completely understood her best friend's thirst. Stephen was a real catch and he was totally Abby's type. "Some factory in Ohio?"

"I don't understand men." Quinn said. "They're stupid and only care about sports."

"But they also look like sex and good orgasms." Abby added, still peaking at Stephen from time to time.

"Would you just get it over with and talk to him already?" Olivia encouraged. "If you want him, let it be known. You've never been shy before, don't start on me now."

Abby was about to agree with Olivia and thank her for the small little pep-talk when Olivia was summoned by Fitz's loud hollering. Olivia hopped down from her stool to go find him. Abby and Quinn followed suit, wanting to know what it all was about.

When Olivia reached the living room, Fitz and Jake were arguing statistics.

"It takes more than numbers to make a team!" Fitz roared passionately. "Yes, the Yankees have the numbers. On a good day, they are a phenomenal team but it takes a lot more than practice. What your team lacks, mine has."

Crossed arms, Jake wore a sour look. "And what is that?" He asked.

"Heart." Fitz replied. "The Mets are more than just numbers and statistics. Admittedly, they haven't had many World Series championships in a few decades but they're very well accomplished as a whole team. They share the wins and the losses with pride. When they thrive, like they are right now in the series (5-2) it shows through their hard work and dedication."

Jake shook his head. How does he even agree against this? Looking up, he spotted Olivia. He gave her a once over in her outfit for the umpteenth time this night and yet again, how he reacted to her presence still didn't go away. She looked hot and it was taking everything in him not to drool over her. In the back of his mind, he's day-dreaming about what it would be like to fuck her. He wants to fuck her but he also wants to win this stupid argument with Fitz and hold up his team.

"Would you settle this down for us ladies?" Charlie pleaded. "These two are like two words away from trading punches." He threw back the rest of his beer, a smirk of sheer amusement plastered on his face. He was that kind of guy.

"Be honest Fireball," Fitz grabbed Olivia's hand and pulled her towards him more. Entwining their fingers together, he looked up at her and asked: "What team do you think is better: Yankees or Mets?"

Jake's gaze dropped at Fitz's and Olivia's entwined fingers. His brows tightened a little and curiosity filled him up. Were they a thing? His attention was brought back to the matter at hand when Olivia sighed.

"This is tough." She scrunched up her nose.

Jake thought she was pretty cute. And damn, she had these fuckable lips. He wondered what it would feel like to slide between those plump lips of hers and have her suck his soul out. Just the thought was enough to cloud him with lust and stir up a small tent in his jeans. But just as quickly as that tent formed, it downed twice as fast when she uttered her next few words.

"I have a soft spot for underdogs. Sorry Jake but I'll have to go with The Mets on this one."

A series of things happened next. Fitz shot up from his seat on the couch and picked Olivia up. She screeched as he swirled with her in his arms in the middle of the living room. He wore the biggest smile as he kissed Olivia's cheek. On the couch, Jake is running his fingers through his thin brown hair, clearly feeling the symptoms of defeat as he shook his head profusely back and forth. Charlie is still very much amused by all of it and poor Stephen is trying not to stare too long at the redhead perched up against the opposite wall in the living room with her a hand on her hip as she sipped on her beverage. Quinn was very much unbothered by all of it as she scrolled through her dash on Instagram.

"That's my girl!" Fitz said proudly as he put Olivia back on her feet. He wrapped his big arm around her neck and kissed her temple. "High five, baby." He held his hand up and Olivia could do nothing but oblige. She loved seeing him this happy.

A minute later, Jake still couldn't look at the pair and Fitz was still on his high horse, gloating.

"You wound me, Olivia." Jake told her. "I thought we were friends."

Olivia shrugged and offered him a tight-lipped smile. "Agree to disagree." She said.

"Now that that's over, can we get to playing some poker or what?" Charlie asked

...

Before the poker game started, Abby informed Fitz that they were running low on booze. Men don't play poker without booze because sometimes when shit gets serious, they need alcohol to numb the feeling of being the joke at the poker table. So, Fitz was going for a run to the liquor store. It was nearly eleven o'clock and pretty much everything near him was closed but luckily for all of them, there was a 24/7 liquor store just ten minutes from his apartment on foot.

Before he left, he checked in with Olivia who was assisting Quinn with his Apple Bluetooth system.

"I'm going on an errand run." He told her. "Don't go anywhere. I'll be back in less than twenty minutes, okay?"

Olivia handed Quinn her cellphone and turned to Fitz. "Can I come?" She asked.

That sounded like a great idea to Fitz. Apart from their little moment outside when Olivia had first arrived, he hadn't really had the chance to talk to her and he wanted that time with her. Just them. This was the perfect opportunity.

"Of course." He answered.

Olivia nodded. She grabbed Abby's jacket from the coat rack just in case it was a bit chilly outside and followed right after Fitz who took her hand in his as soon as she was within his reach.

But before they were out the door, Olivia was stopped by Abby. "I wanna make cantaritos. Can you grab what I need?" The redhead asked.

"Yeah." Olivia nodded.

So it was going to be a long night after all.

Smirking at the two of them at the door, Abby smirked. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do." She said.

Tilting her head to the side and squinting at her best friend, Olivia threw the redhead the finger. "What wouldn't you do, Abigail?"

The redhead pondered the question for a second then nodded. "Good one." She said.

"Thank you!" Olivia flashed back a smile and then they were out the door.

...

In the illuminated streets of New York, Olivia breathe in the fresh air. She didn't even need Abby's jacket after all. it was such a beautiful night out. There was this breeze out that made her want to hop into a convertible, let the sunroof down and release her wild mane of curls into the wind as she flies through a fairly empty road for a very long drive. It was that kind of night out and it brought a deep sense of peace and happiness to her. That happiness was multiplied tenfold because accompanying her was one of the most wonderful human being she's ever known. Olivia couldn't think of anyone else to share this night with.

They'd decided to ditch Fitz's truck altogether as soon as the summer night breeze had hit them and since, Olivia has been plastered at his side. He carried her jacket on one shoulder and tucked her at his side. With one arm around her neck, their fingers entwined, they walked down the streets in a comfortable silence.

"Everything okay?" Fitz asked.

Olivia nodded her head with a smile. "Everything's great." She replied, looking up at him.

They stopped briefly in the middle of the sidewalk as Fitz halted them. He looked at Olivia with this intensity that made her feel as though she was the most beautiful woman in the world. She swooned under the penetrating gaze of his blue eyes.

"You're beautiful." Fitz said.

When he said it, Olivia simply smiled back at him. She felt it. She believed him.

They resumed their walk and Olivia lie her head on his broad shoulder. _Damn he smelled good._

This was a great night indeed.

"I love the haircut, by the way." She complimented.

She could feel his smile against her cheek. "Thank you, Fireball."

...

In the liquor store, Olivia browsed the aisles with Fitz rocking to _Valerie_ \- Amy Winehouse's version as it played on the overhead speakers. Fitz grabbed a bottle of silver tequila while Olivia chose a favored bottle of wine for herself. She put it in the little green basket that Fitz carried before walking towards the fridges where some of the drinks were cooling.

"Should I grab more beers for the boys?" She hollered to Fitz.

He came into view and shook his head. He raised a bottle of scotch instead and winked. "Poker tends get a rise out of Jake when he starts to lose. We need the good stuff to knock him out."

Smirking, Olivia nodded. "Gotcha."

She slid open one of the doors of the freezers and reached for a large bottle of grapefruit soda. Fitz grabbed a pack of ice and then they were at the register checking out. Olivia's eyes landed on chocolate truffle treats that were on sale seventy-five percent off. They might taste terrible but because they were so cheap, she bought them anyways. Her Nana thought her to never pass up on a good deal. She aimed to make the woman proud beyond her grave.

Ever the gentleman, Fitz paid the bill. Olivia offered to help him with the bags but he politely declined. Even with his hands full he still managed to open doors for her when it was time to leave. He still grabbed her hand to hold when they crossed the street at a stop light. All of that only fully solidified what Olivia already knew about him. He was just an incredible man and she was so proud to call him her friend.

Soon enough, they were back at the house and tangled into the swing of things again.

...

In the kitchen, Abby is fast at work as soon as Fitz and Olivia are back from the liquor store. She searched through Fitz's fully stocked fridge for fruits. She founds some oranges, limes and lemons. Even without the grapefruits which were necessary to make this drink, she thought she could work with what she had in her possession as she filled a pitcher almost to the brim with ice. As she sliced a kitchen knife through the fruits, Stephen came stumbling in the kitchen. He didn't interrupt her masterpiece. He thought he was being respectful by keeping his distance and letting her do her thing. But as he stood in the doorway, watching her drain a whole bottle of tequila into a pitcher of ice and mixing it with other things, Stephen became more than amazed. She was cool. Too cool for him. Like way out of his league and it didn't help that she was sexy as sin to him.

"You're just gonna stare or are you actually gonna say something?" Abby didn't miss a beat as she incorporated the grapefruit soda into the pitcher of ice and tequila.

She's been aware of him staring at her and it took every ounce of self-control she had not to look up at him and melt. Abby didn't know what it was about him that made her like him so much. They'd barely spoken three sentences to each other all night. But damn it, he had the body of a Greek God, the swagger of an Abercrombie model, and a voice so deep smooth, it sounded like it was rolled in a bath full of orgasm. That wasn't all though. He had those wide brown eyes filled with warmth and God, his accent. Aby was a sucker for foreign accent and his was probably going to be the death of her.

"Sex on the beach." Stephen said.

As soon as the words escaped his lips, he cursed himself. What kind of idiot was he? He's been trying to figure out a way to talk to her all night and he blew the one and probably only opportunity he had to talk to her on a drink name! Seriously, what kind of idiot was he?

Abby chuckled. "Well, normally I require a meal first and more than five minutes of conversation before I do entertain the thought of sleeping with a man but I suppose I could make an exception for you."

She watched him blush and shift his weigh from foot to foot. Abby watched him become speechless and for some reason, that made him look all the more attractive to her.

"I didn't mean..."

"The drink." Abby said. "I know exactly what you meant." She squeezed oranges into the pitcher, next she tossed some lime, lemon slices and cherries into the pitcher as garnish before throwing a decent amount of salt into the beverage. Reaching for a ladle, she stirred the drink, mixing in everything together.

"I don't bite, you know. You can join me and talk to me." She opened Fitz's cabinet and found red plastic cups. Placing an empty one on the counter, she slid it over to him, another subtle invitation on her part.

Stephen took it. He fucked up his one opportunity royally but for one reason or another, she was giving him another chance. How could he not take it?

"Wanna be my taste tester?" Abby asked, almost shyly.

Stephen nodded eagerly. "Put me to work."

Abby seized him up and down. Her mind worked fast and sometimes, not always in the purest way. She'd like to put him to work alright. If his body is anything like she's imagining under these clothes, she won't just put him to work. Listen... hmm. Have mercy.

Deciding to seek redemption from her sinful thoughts, Abby poured a ladle of her masterpiece into his red cup and encouraged him to take a sip.

"Holy shit!" Stephen cried.

Abby laughed when he clutched his chest and begin coughing. "Too strong?" She inquired.

Stephen nodded. "There's a whole bottle of tequila in this." He said. "It's strong but it's really good. Are you a bartender or something?"

Abby shook her head. "I'm a tattoo artist..." She begin to tell him.

That piece of information only confirmed what Stephen already knew. Of course she's a tattoo artist and probably a damn good one at that if the tattoos on her skin were any of her work. She was way too cool for him.

"I was trying this thing a few years back," Stephen watched her pause as she thought of the perfect word. She scratched her brows and wrinkled her nose. It was the cutest thing he's ever seen a human being do. She was simply incredible in his eyes. "Hmm... _"adulting"_ I think they call it these days. I got a job as a bartender in college. I loved it. It was a good gig."

"So how'd you get into tattoos?" Stephen asked, clearly intrigued.

She smirked at him as she turned around to grab a tray. She placed the pitcher of tequila cocktail on it and then grabbed more red cups. "That's awfully personal." She told him. She grabbed the tray from the counter and balanced it with one hand on the bottom, another sign of how good she truly was at all this bartending business. Stephen was interested to see what she could do behind an actual bar. "Ask me out and maybe we'll talk about it."

 _Damn it, she was smooth._

And just when Stephen thought she couldn't stun him anymore than she already does, she turned around and winked at him. "By the way, I'm more of a _"fuck-me-senseless-in-a-bathroom"_ kind of gal. While sex on the beach does sound fun, I don't really like the feeling of sand everywhere."

Stephen watched her leave and disappear into the living room. He was completely bedazzled by the redhead.

"I'm in love." He said to himself.

...

Once the poker game started, everyone got a job.

Quinn played the role of a dealer at the poker table. After seeing what she can do with a deck of card and being deemed impressive by Charlie, the guys agreed that she should be in charge of dealing their cards. It worked out perfectly because Jake had the tendency to spew out the word _"cheating"_ when he was starting to lose too much money.

Abby on the other hand was still a bartender. She was in charge of refilling cups of cantaritos and shots of scotch. She also made sure that bets were carried out exactly how it was supposed to. So far, the game favored Fitzgerald because he was winning big at the table.

As for Olivia, she wasn't really doing much. At the beginning of the game, she had been on DJ duty but soon, she was deemed Fitz's lucky charm because he thought with her by his side, his luck tonight at the table had never been stronger. This role benefitted her very well. She was currently two-hundred and fifty dollars richer because with each round won, Fitz split his shares with her. She really didn't have much to complain about.

Jake was not pleased.

Charlie didn't care much about losing a couple hundred bucks on some stupid poker game.

And Stephen was very focused. He had one goal to execute tonight. He was trying to figure out how he was going to get Abigail Whelan to go home with him. If not that, then he hoped that by the end of the night, he would ball up the nerves to ask for her phone number because there was no way he was leaving without the chance to get to know her a little bit better.

...

Way too many cups of cantaritos and shots of scotch later, the poker game had wrapped up and all six of them sat around the table in the kitchen playing a game of Bullshit. It was hilarious to say the least because with all of them drunk off their faces, it became easier at times to guess when someone at the table was lying about their hand. Everyone learned that Charlie was a terrible liar under the influence. Abby sucked at Bullshit, Stephen was in love... or maybe deep lust, and Quinn was a lightweight.

It was a quarter to two when everyone decided it was probably wise to start filing out. While being in the company of each other was fun, they all had lives to go back to the next morning and liver failure was not an option.

Stephen didn't know what it was that came over him in those final minutes. It might've been the alcohol but suddenly, he felt brave enough to talk to Abby. There was no way he was leaving without her in his arms. He wasn't going to miss his shot at being with the sexiest woman he's ever known. He felt ridiculous around her. This whole night he's felt like he was back in junior high with no game or whatsoever. And she was so tiny; hardly anything to be intimidated by but for some reason, Abby made him lose his sense of confidence. He wasn't the alpha male that had the ability to dominate the female population. He was reduced to a puppy that just wanted attention instead. So in this final moment, he was over the moon for this burst of adrenaline that had him standing outside of Fitz's guest bathroom waiting for her.

When she came out, he didn't hesitate twice about letting her know exactly how he felt. He grabbed her by the waist and pushed her up against the nearest wall in the dark hallway. With the light off, it was almost pitch black but Stephen could still see her glowing blue eyes. They were beautiful and Stephen forgot all about formalities.

"You're gonna kiss me or what?" Abby challenged.

Stephen shook his head as a smirk appeared on his face. She really was way out of his league. He's never met a woman who was so forward and unapologetic before tonight. Before Abigail Whelan. And when he kissed her, Stephen considered that to be the best choice he's ever made in his entire life. She was undoubtedly surprised but as soon as what was happening registered for her, she was kissing him back with a fierceness that threatened to paralyze him. Stephen doesn't believe in God but her lips sure tasted like heaven and her moans were the most delicate sounds to his ears. Her petite body fit perfectly against his and he hoisted her up against the wall, forgetting for a moment just where they were as her long legs went around his waist and her arms around his neck.

 _God is good._

Pulling away for a brief second, Stephen stared breathlessly into the redhead's blue eyes. His lips swollen, his eyes glazed with lust, he brought his hand to her face and ran his fingers through her short hair. She gave him a bashful smile and Stephen was sure there was no way out for him. He'd gotten a taste and now, he was forever addicted. He drew another kiss from the redhead's succulents lips before retreating back again to peck a freckle against her nose, sweetly. "Come home with me." He demanded.

Abby smiled again and Stephen felt his heart swell up in his chest. "I thought you'd never asked." She replied.

He could only kiss her lips again. He couldn't get enough.

When they walked back into the living room with fingers clasped together, Abby watched Olivia do the most ridiculous dance in her honor.

888

* * *

Much, much later, after everyone left and the place was a mess of empty beer bottles, red cups and shot glasses, both Fitz and Olivia retired in the living on the couch with a bottle of wine in the darkness. The thought to call for a cab to take her home didn't even cross Olivia's mind as she lie in Fitz's arms - silence their only companion. She had never felt more relaxed and at home than in that very moment cuddled up against his chest. It might've had something to do with her having way too many glasses of Abby's cantaritos but even that was debatable.

"Here." Voice hoarse, Olivia raised her hand up and brought a rum flavored truffle to Fitz's mouth from the box she had gotten when they made the trip to the liquor store for more alcohol earlier.

Fitz looked down in the darkness and took what was offered to him without question for the simple fact that he trusted Olivia. Once the chocolate hit his tongue, he moaned with delight as the rum flavor melted on his tongue and awakened his taste buds. Fitz was surprised how delicious they tasted considering they were cheap and bought from a convenient liquor store.

"These aren't half bad." He commented.

"I'm a woman of great taste." Olivia bragged as she brought another piece to his mouth. "Open, please."

"Yes, ma'am." Fitz happily obliged.

After the second piece, Fitz took a sip of her wine from the bottle. He then sighed and blew out a breath of exhaustion.

"Tired?" Olivia asked, looking up into his eyes.

Fitz's lips fell on her forehead and he kissed the crown of her head. "Yeah." He replied. "But I'm glad you're here. You?"

"Tired and drunk." Olivia replied.

And to that, they both chuckled.

"But I'm glad to be here too." Olivia added.

For a few minutes, silence fell between them again and they were more than happy to submit to it, not feeling the need to fill in the quietness with meaningless conversation. They were good that way - able to just enjoy each other's company without feeling the need to talk about anything because sometimes even when they said nothing, they told each other everything. This development only occurred over the course of time they spent together in the Hampton and though they're both in agreement that what they shared was rare and strange, they didn't think to question it because they also knew that this rare and strange thing is what makes them work. It's what makes them both such great friends.

"When did your couch get this comfortable by the way?" Olivia spoke, nearly half asleep.

Fitz chuckled. "It didn't." He replied. "This is a new one. Delivered just yesterday. Not bad, right?"

Even Fitz could agree that he was pretty obsessed with his new couch as well. The triple layers of soft velvet underneath him was worth every damn penny that the new recliner cost him.

"You won't hear any complaints from me, Chief." Olivia replied.

Fitz placed another kiss on her forehead before he made a move to get up but Olivia's whining and whimpering was making it a bit difficult.

"Where are you going?" Olivia asked.

"Bathroom." Fitz replied. "I'll only be a minute."

"Fine." Olivia pouted.

Fitz stood up and grabbed the nearly empty bottle of wine and the rest of the truffles. "You're done with those?"

Olivia nodded, eyes heavy with sleep. "Yeah."

She watched Fitz's back disappear into the darkness before grabbing a pillow and snuggling against it. The pillow kind of smelled like him.

...

When Fitz returned back five minutes later with aspirin, two bottles of water and a blanket in hand, he found Olivia almost fast asleep. She was dozing off with her legs hanging over the couch and her face buried in a throw pillow. A smile stretched Fitz's face as he placed the blanket on the arm of the couch and the bottles of water on the glass table in the middle of the living room. He then crouched down in front of her and begin working on removing her shoes. Before he'd gotten to the other foot, she stirred awake and looked embarrassed about falling asleep.

"I'm sorry." Olivia started to apologize.

Fitz just ignored her because he didn't know why she was apologizing for something as harmless as falling asleep. Exhaustion and intoxication were a pretty strong combination and coupled together, he couldn't blame her for falling asleep. So Fitz continued on with his task and succeeded in removing the second shoe before reaching for one of the bottles of water.

"Think you can sit up straight for a bit?" Fitz asked.

Olivia nodded even though the small movement caused her head to pound like crazy. Fitz handed her a bottle of water and she chugged half of it before he put two aspirins in the palm of her hand.

Upon finishing her water, Olivia wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and looked at Fitz. "Thank you." She said.

"No problem." He winked. "Can you kick your legs up."

Olivia folded her knees together towards her chest and Fitz pressed a button on the side of the couch that reclined it into a comfy bed.

"Uh, fancy." Olivia teased.

Fitz smirked before taking some aspirin and chugging a bottle of water himself. He then removed his shoes before climbing next to Olivia and pulling her against his chest. Naturally, Olivia's head found its rightful place in the crook of his shoulder as she gently wrapped her arms around his neck. It only took a second before Olivia's fingers were running through his curls. In return, Fitz's grip on her waist tightened and he kissed her forehead for the third time this night.

"Spend the day with me tomorrow." Fitz proposed.

Olivia sighed, burying her face further into his neck and inhaling his scent through his cotton t-shirt. "So long as you promise to feed me." She replied.

"Always." Fitz said.

Then, Olivia shrugged and completely melted at his side. She felt so relaxed and comfy that sleep wasn't very far behind. But before she dozed off again, this time for what she hopes will be well into the afternoon, she grabbed Fitz's hand that had come up to trace invisible circles on her forearm and entwined their fingers together before kissing the inside of his wrist. "Done and done, Ace."

The last thing Olivia felt before she completely blacked out to the land of dreams was Fitz hovering a blanket over her and him whispering: "Goodnight, Fireball," in her ears.

* * *

888

Next morning came and Fitz found himself awake earlier than usual for a Sunday morning - the reason being, this very beautiful woman sleeping next to him. At some point in the middle of the night, Fitz had awaken for a glass of water and made the decision to gather Olivia's unconscious body to his bed. And now, looking at her in her most vulnerable state - unconscious, unalert and blissfully peaceful, Fitz didn't think anything else in the world felt more right.

With the morning sunlight peaking through the curtains and bouncing off her skin, Olivia had this ethereal glow about her that made her look every bit the Goddess that Fitz thought she was. Fitz had never known a woman more beautiful in his lifetime and the urge to lean over to kiss her sweet, pouty lips was threatening to kill him.

Fitz must've stared too long and in the process forget himself as he got lost in the beauty that was Olivia Pope because when she woke up, he was very unaware and therefore, he got busted.

"You're staring. " Olivia whispered, shielding her face from his view.

Fitz sighed. What could he say? What possible excuse was good enough to justify getting caught staring at her like some creep?

Fitz reckoned he could tell the truth. It would be easy and simple. ' _You're the most beautiful woman I've ever known and on that note, you should also know that I am madly, desperately and permanently in love with you.'_ Easy enough, right? But for some reason, he couldn't get the words out. They were stuck on the tip of his tongue and each second he spent not saying them, the words burned his tongue.

It just wasn't the right time- Fitz kept convincing himself but truth be told, he's the one that wasn't ready. He was the coward. Not time.

So to get himself out of this pickle he's suddenly found himself in, he came up with the bullshitest excuse there ever was.

"You're still staring, Ace." Olivia mumbled in her hands bashfully. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Fitz swallowed the sudden dryness in his throat as he begin. "Don't freak out, okay?"

Instantly on alert, Olivia removed her hands from her face to look at Fitz. She looked so damn adorable with those big brown eyes of hers. It also didn't help Fitz that her wild mess of curls were spilling all over his sheets and when she batted her thick, curly lashes at him, Fitz was a goner. He knew then that he would sell his soul to the devil for this girl in a heartbeat with no questions asked. He was in so deep, he couldn't even see a way out. Talk about seriously fucked.

"That's never a good statement, Fitz." Olivia said.

Fitz nodded. "I know." He agreed. "Just try not to freak out though."

The anticipation was killing Olivia the longer he stalled. She was really trying to keep it together but on the inside, her heart was hammering against her chest.

"Okay, spill it."

Fitz fought his hardest not to burst into laughter. This needed to work but he also knew if it did, Olivia would never forgive him. It was better than the latter.

"Alright," He drawled. "So, don't move but there's a spider crawling over you."

"WHAT?" Olivia screamed.

The next series of events that occurred were all hysterical to the eyes. Gone were the sheets and as soon as the word 'spider' registered to Olivia's ears, she was jumping out of Fitz's bed, screaming from the top of her lungs. She discarded her shirt to some other part of the room, leaving her in only a black bra as she shook her hair like crazy.

"Why the hell are there spiders in your room, Fitz?!" Olivia yelled.

Meanwhile on the bed, tears were coating the corners of Fitz's eyes. His head was thrown back and his throat was visibly vibrating from the sound obnoxious laughter escaping his lips. By the time Olivia caught on to his cruel joke, she was way too pissed off and entirely too frightened to find any of it funny. She didn't find anything with eight legs and the ability to crawl funny, so her only response to Fitz's very cruel joke was to attack him with pillows. Of course, that did nothing because it only caused him to laugh even harder while dodging every blow.

"That was not funny!" Olivia cried, clearly annoyed.

Fitz had finally managed to get a lid on his laughter but he still possessed a stupid grin on his lips as he looked at Olivia. "I didn't know you were scared of spiders." He said.

"You got jokes." Olivia rolled her eyes.

"Well, we never really did talk about our deepest, darkest fears." He reasoned. "And besides, you're so tough. I just never took you for the spider-fearing kind of gal."

"Oh shut up, Fitzgerald." Olivia muffled a pillow over his face.

At this point, she was seriously contemplating suffocating him but she quickly had to remind herself that despite his cruel joke, he was still one of her favorite person.

"Are you really mad at me?" Fitz asked.

Olivia shrugged. "I don't know." She sassed. "I just tried to kill you with a pillow. That sound too friendly to you?"

"Wow." Fitz whispered dramatically. "I'm sorry to break it to you, but you're gonna have to forgive me, sweetheart." He said.

Olivia scoffed at him. "Why is that?"

Fitz grabbed her hand and somehow, Olivia was now straddling his lap. She was shirtless, wearing nothing but a pair of his boxers and a black bra. It didn't go unnoticed to the both of them how inconvenient this all seemed but it certainly didn't feel as such because to each other, they were just Ace and Fireball. They shared a level of comfortability with each other that was unknown to many and that was part of what made their _'friendship'_ so unique all on its own.

"I forgave you for attempting to murder me with a pillow." Fitz replied. "It's only fair that you afford me the same courtesy for scaring you with spider that doesn't even exist."

Olivia shook her head and crinkled her nose in that cute way that could drive any man into the land of insanity. But unfortunately and well… also fortunately, Fitz was currently the only man walking that path to insanity. He couldn't really fault her though. She didn't know what she was doing to him.

"I don't think that's how it works." Olivia said.

"That's exactly how it works." Fitz nodded. "Forgiving is caring." He wiggled his eyebrows.

To further thrust him to the very brink of insanity with no way of turning back, she burst into laughter. The sound unlike anything Fitz has ever known. He was convinced that this was the happiest sound on earth. It was music to Fitz's hopeless heart even if it was at his expense.

"No one says that, Ace." Olivia informed.

Fitz shook his head: completely, stupidly, madly, desperately and permanently in love with this girl. She didn't even know the intensity of that love. Only he did and it threatened to blow him into smithereens every second he spent not proclaiming it and setting it free.

"No one likes a smartass." Fitz sassed. "Now, forgive me, woman."

"… or what?" Olivia challenged.

Fitz raised his brows, clearly feeling attacked. "I never planned on there being an or else but since someone decided to be a smartass, I suppose I'm gonna have to come up with an alternative, won't I now?"

She got no warning. Somehow, this whole pleasant banter had turned into a merciless wrath of kisses being unleashed and Olivia was very adamant on shielding herself from them.

"Am I forgiven yet?" Fitz asked.

Olivia was not blunt enough to admit that she was enjoying all this pampering a little too much.

"Nope!" She replied.

And so begin the onslaught of pampering again.

Olivia had never thought it was possible to get exhausted from laughing while dodging kisses. But she was. She was tired and she could feel a cramp starting in her stomach from enjoying all of this a little too much.

"Okay, okay…" Olivia surrendered, shaking her head back and forth. She started chuckling. "Your beard tickles."

Their foreheads perfectly aligned, Fitz pushed back her mass of crazy curls that were tumbling over her face.

"Am I forgiven?" He asked again.

This time, Olivia did nod even as she wore a cute grin across her lips. "Yes." She answered. "I forgive you for being an asshole."

Fitz gasped. "You're so mean to me." He complained with a pout.

He went to give Olivia one more kiss on the cheek but it was also at that moment that she chose to move her face.

… and then, it just happened.

At first, Olivia didn't even think it happened. It was the sweetest, lightest, softest touch she's ever experienced. She could feel her heart thumping against her chest but being in the moment, she wasn't over thinking it. It's like her brain stopped functioning altogether, so with her mind completely blank, Olivia let her eyes close. It was just ten seconds.

Ten seconds of not knowing death, sorrow or pain.

It was only ten seconds but it felt like forever. Like time had suspended and became completely void as this game changer moment happened. Ten second of nothing but… joy? Ten seconds that felt completely glorious.

It was over way too soon because when Olivia opened her eyes again, Fitz was just staring at her. His eyes were filled with something she couldn't dare to put a name to. She waited for the moment to run its course and for the apologies to come flying out but instead, they simply stared; unable to put into words what had just transpired between them.

The unbearable silence that followed suit was much too unlike them and so the spell was broken.

"Breakfast?" Olivia proposed.

Fitz blinked; maneuvering himself out of the trance he'd been stuck in. Then, it suddenly kicked in and his heart rate sped up. He kissed her! They kissed! It was an accident but it happened and it was glorious. Wow!

Just as quickly as his heart rate had picked up, it dropped twice as fast when Fitz realized that they weren't going to talk about it because the kiss was nothing else but a mistake. A fluke accident that they were going to treat as such by pretending that it didn't happen.

Therefore, with that understanding, all Fitz could say to her proposition was a whispered, "Okay."

…

They went through breakfast not addressing the humongous, pink elephant in the room. Even as Olivia helped Fitz clean up his apartment from the mess of the night before, they still don't talk about it. Not because it was a touchy subject but because deep down, they both knew that the kiss happened and they didn't want to talk about it for fear that it might make things awkward between them. So in this instance, they were both cowards

Olivia huffed as she let go of the big recycling bag she was holding. She was used to being with Fitz in the quiet. Some of their best times together existed because of the comfortable silence they grew to appreciate. But something about this quietness didn't sit well with Olivia. She couldn't stand Fitz not being able to look her in the eyes or him walking around her on eggshells. It was ridiculous. They were mature adults.

To loosen up the cold mood, Olivia quickly ran down the hall to Fitz's room to retrieve her phone. Using Fitz's charger, she plugged her phone against the wall once she was back in the living room. Once her phone powered back on, she connected it to his Apple Bluetooth speakers. Soon enough, the sound of Sam Smith's swoon worthy voice was filling up the apartment as Olivia begin to sing the words out loud. It didn't even take two seconds before Fitz was popping his head in the living room.

"Why do you insist on torturing me?" He asked.

With a smirk playing on her lips, Olivia turned to the sound of his voice and winked. "You'll live, Ace."

And when Fitz smiled back, they both knew they'd be just fine.

888

Hours later found them right back where their day had begin. They were back in Fitz's room, on the bed, staring blankly up at the rotating fan in the ceiling. After cleaning up the entire apartment, taking turns showering, and then eating a late lunch, they were both bored out of their minds.

"What should we do?" Fitz asked.

Olivia shrugged. She was fine. She didn't mind simply lying there with him, doing nothing. Olivia considered any time spent in Fitz's presence to be great, whether they were breaking into his gym late at night or simply laying in silence with each other in the middle of the day. It didn't matter to her what they did. Just his company was good enough for her but she sensed that when Fitz asked her to spend the day with him the previous night, he had something better in mind than retiring back to his bedroom in the late afternoon with nothing to do.

"Wanna go for a run?" Olivia didn't know why she would even suggest such a thing. She absolutely hated that thing called running but it's the best she could come up with.

Fitz on the other hand didn't think it was a bad idea. He figured anything was better than being holed up in his apartment with nothing productive to do. Plus, it was nice out.

"Sure." He replied.

…

Half an hour later, they were at Olivia's place. Fitz was sitting in the living room waiting for her as she changed into her work out gear. As he sat down, Fitz took in her place in its entirety for the very first time. It was very Olivia Pope style: tidy, creatively decorated and most of all, welcoming.

A few minutes later, Olivia came back out dressed in Nike black and grey split shorts, a purple tank top, matching light grey and purple Nike free runs. Her crazy curls were tamed by a thin headband and pulled up into a messy bun.

 _Damn-_ Fitz thought.

He didn't know how she made running gears look sexy but apparently, there wasn't an ability that the woman didn't possess. Fitz had the impression that she could wear a trash bag and she'd still manage to make it work.

Olivia went to her full fridge and pulled out two bottles of water. She started chugging hers on her way back to the living room and once she reached Fitz, she thrust the other one at him.

"Ready?" She asked.

Fitz nodded. "Yep."

…

They left Fitz's truck parked in the parking lot of Olivia's building, deciding to instead walk the twenty minutes to Central park. Once they'd gotten there, they did a few stretches before taking off on a light jog as a warm up. Olivia had decided to get a little competitive and Fitz never having been one to turn down a challenge quickly accepted when Olivia proposed a race.

The five miles run was brutal because of the summer heat but it was also fun because every time they wanted to give up, one or the other would trash talk, giving each other the boost they needed to finish the race.

Long distance wise, Fitz crushed Olivia by a mile but when it came to sprinting, she murdered his entire manhood. Fitz had never raced a quicker opponent or one more competitive than Olivia Pope. It was true, people learn something new every day.

After a grueling forty five minutes run, they both passed out on the grass under a sycamore street in Central Park. They were breathless, sweaty and entirely too exhausted to care about the weird looks that people were giving them, let alone fathom the thought of moving from their position on the ground.

"I hate running." Olivia said, her heart thumping against her chest. With all the adrenaline still pumping in her veins, cooling down proved to be more difficult than usual and breathing became a full body task.

Fitz nodded in agreement as he wiped the sweat off his brows with the back of his hand. "Me too." He said. "But on the bright side, I think we just might be qualified for the New York marathon or the Olympics."

"Oh yeah?" Olivia heaved, "Well, good luck to you, Romeo. I'll be sure to bring a lounge chair, with lots of snacks to support you."

Fitz begin laughing which made it even more difficult to catch his breath. Soon enough, he sounded like he was ready to cough up a lung.

"Stop laughing." Olivia said smilingly. "I can't give you CPR when I can barely breathe myself."

Five minutes later, they were back to normal. Their breathings had become regular again and their hearts finally stopped thumping at the speed of a thousand snare drums. Although, their legs were still a working progress.

Olivia still couldn't feel hers at all.

"Come on." Fitz sat up, encouraging Olivia to do the same. "You're gonna cramp up. You gotta get up and walk it off."

Olivia did so with a lot of groans of disapproval. She hated running. She felt all gross and sweaty, not to mention so exhausted. All she could think about was a shower and fast food. Luckily for her, one of two was more attainable.

As they passed by a frozen yogurt shop, Olivia didn't have to think twice before she was dragging Fitz inside the shop with her.

"Let's go make some unhealthy choices." She said.

Fitz could only follow.

The yogurt shop was one of those make-your-own-treat kind of place so it was really cool to be able to play with all the toppings. They both got vanilla flavors with a wide combination of really delicious coverture.

"This is the best thing ever." Olivia proclaimed. A moan of pure delight escaped her lips as she brought another spoonful of the cold treat to her mouth.

Fitz silently agreed. He could never help the admiration that clouded his vision whenever he watched Olivia eat. He loved that she had an appreciation for food and could enjoy the simple indulgence. He loved that she could throw her head back on a Sunday afternoon and moan with avidity while eating a delicious treat without worrying about walking off the calories after. The same couldn't be said for a lot of women.

"So what's up, Ace?" Olivia asked, looking at Fitz across from her in the booth. "Tell me something I don't already know."

"I'm thinking of getting a dog." Fitz informed.

To be honest, the idea of getting a pet has been in the back of his mind for quite a while now. But he's been putting off going to the animal adoption center because of his working schedule. Being the owner of a small business, Fitz liked to be hands on, so therefore he puts in very long hours at the gym. He didn't want to get a pet, only to neglect it by leaving it at his apartment for the better part of a full day.

"Why are you second guessing it?" Olivia asked.

Fitz was amazed with her ability to read his mind sometimes. It was quite frightening but still amazing nonetheless.

"Because I won't have time to care for it." He answered.

"I think you should get it." Olivia said after another spoonful of her frozen yogurt. "We could co-parent if that would make it easier for you."

"Seriously?" Eyes wide, Fitz raised his brows in question.

"Yep." Olivia nodded, swinging her legs under the table like a toddler. "And it's gonna be great."

Fitz could only agree. "It's gonna be great."

So, they were adopting a dog together. They were both smiling. It was going to be great.

…

 _Much later…_

When they'd gotten back from their run and yogurt indulgence, they didn't even debate whether or not they should spend the night together again. As soon as Olivia entered her apartment, she simply packed an overnight bag with her toiletries, seeing as though she planned on showering and washing her hair over at Fitz's house.

Now fresh out of the shower with her hair still wet from a refreshing hour wash, Olivia walked into Fitz's room sporting a large grey over-sized t-shirt and a pair of checkered boxers.

Minutes later, Fitz walked into the room carrying a large box of pizza and napkins in one hand. With the other, he managed a bottle of wine he'd smuggled out of Olivia's house along with two glasses of wine. A smile that certainly reached his eyes blossomed on his cheek when he was presented with the sight of Olivia drying her hair with a towel next to his bed. This was by far his favorite look on her. Her in his clothes looking comfortable and relaxed. That's when she was the most beautiful in his opinion. At that exact moment, Fitz couldn't picture his day ending any better. He had his favorite girl with him, greasy cheese and Italian sausage pizza and a great bottle of wine. He was the luckiest man alive. He believed so with all his being.

Fitz hopped into bed at the same time as Olivia and this time, try as he might, the urge to lean over and kiss her wouldn't go away. So he did. He leaned over and placed a kiss on her cheek knowing that it's as much as they both could handle for the time being. He then thrust the box of pizza in the middle of the bed and opened the top. They wasted no time digging in.

Two slices in, Fitz turned on the TV and started browsing Netflix for something interesting to watch but to no avail. He then switched to Hulu where they had much more success with a TV series. They both decided on _Vikings_ after reading the plot description. They were both hooked on the TV show after the first episode and so they decided to make it a marathon.

The two fell asleep blissfully drunk and exhausted around three o'clock in the morning with the TV still streaming. In each other's arms, they snored, unaware and unbothered by the outside world, for they were the only two who existed when they were together.

And it was great. Glorious even.

* * *

 _Following week..._

* * *

It was after closing on a Thursday night and Fitz had decided to stay a bit later at the gym to get a much needed work out. He was sort of dealing with a lot of internal battles approaching the anniversary of his parent's death and he found that working out and pushing his body to exhaustion was the best way to deal with the pain that this day usually brought him. He wasn't looking for much company, but when Jake Ballard, his colleague volunteered to join him, Fitz didn't mind as much. He could work out without really talking to him.

So here they were, warming up on the treadmills with the speakers blasting Prince's Purple Rain. Fitz looked lost in his own head while focusing on his breathing and pushing through the burn that started at the back of his leg.

"Did you catch the Yankees's win last night?" Jake asked.

They were barely ten minutes in and he was already out of breath while Fitz hasn't even broken off a sweat yet.

Fitz shook his head. "We already went over this." He replied. "I don't care much for the Yankees."

"That's right, I forgot. You're a Mets fan." Jake chuckled. "You disappoint me, man."

Fitz rolled his eyes. If he knew that there would be talking involved, he would've left to go workout elsewhere or at least use his headphones because that would've been a clear sign that he didn't wish to bond over baseball with a guy who doesn't even get the concept of the game. To Jake, so long as his team won, that made them the best. Fitz huffed. "Whatever."

"Speaking of baseball," Jake said, his breathing labored. "What's the deal with you and that girl from Gumbo Night?"

Jake was curious. He thought Olivia was cute but he'd seen how Fitz interacted with her and he wanted to know what the deal was with them before he made a move on her. It wasn't a question of interest or if Olivia was worth stepping on Fitz's toes. Olivia intrigued him enough to take her on a date or two, but what he was more interested in was tapping her. He imagined she's be a great and fun fuck because ever since he's seen her in that sexy little outfit she wore that night to Fitz's Gumbo Night, she's been featuring in a few of his fantasies that he wouldn't mind making real.

On cue to his question, a mean look graced Fitz's features as his brows tighten. "What girl?"

Fitz knew exactly who Jake was talking about and to be perfectly clear, he didn't give a flying fuck about how cool he was with Jake. If he made a move on Olivia, it will be the last thing he did on this earth. He'll kill Jake before he got within ten feet of Olivia because a guy with Jake's reputation would only hurt her and walk away with no regrets or whatsoever. Fitz was having none of it.

"You know, the one with the fat ass and those dick sucking-"

Fitz didn't even let him finish. He brought the treadmill to a complete stop and snapped his full attention to Jake. "You better not finish that sentence." He said seriously. His chest was heaving and not from running on the treadmill for the past fifteen minutes, although he's sure that played a factor in it. He was heaving because he was ready to punch Jake's face in if he continued his crass description of Olivia.

When Fitz saw that Jake got his message loud and clear (Which was: he wouldn't hesitate twice about fucking him up if he continued to disrespect his friend to his face,) Fitz's tightened his eyebrows and told him: "Her name is Olivia and you'd do best to keep her name out of your mouth and any thoughts you have about her, out of your mind."

The reaction Fitz got next from him after that was not what he was expecting. Instead, the asshole's face broke into a smug ass grin before he burst into laughter. "Oh, I fucking knew it!" Jake said.

"Know what exactly?" Fitz asked, hands at his side- already sick of his shit.

"Be straight with me," Jake begin, wiping his forehead with a towel. "You're tapping her, aren't you?"

Fuck's sake!

Fitz groaned internally. It was taking everything in him not to knock Jake out upside the head. "No." He replied. "And even if I was, I don't think it would be any of your business."

"Ah, got it." Jake scratched his brows before looking up at Fitz. "So you wouldn't mind if I asked her out?"

"Oh but I would." Fitz quickly replied.

"Why's that?" Jake asked. "Is it because she's your girl?"

Fitz wanted to pull his hair. He didn't get Jake's sudden fixation on Olivia and he was starting to blame himself because hadn't he invited Jake to his home, he wouldn't have met Olivia and right now, they wouldn't be having this ridiculous conversation. He already had enough shit to worry about, he didn't need to be worried about Jake getting any closer to Olivia.

"No." Fitz repeated again. And with much more conviction in his voice, he added: "I mean it. Stay the fuck away from her or we're going to have a serious problem."

With that said, Fitz got off the treadmill and left to go hit the weighs. He could already feel a headache coming and he was none too pleased about it. So much for wanting to work out his demons.

* * *

888

It started about three weeks after the Hampton - the terrible, sickening feeling that she was being watched by someone at every corner that she turned. Olivia was never really quite sure though. The first few times she felt it, she chalked it up to pure paranoia. After all, who in New York City would want to follow her everywhere she goes? The thought was absolutely ludicrous and borderline stupid.

But her gut is never wrong and up to a few days prior, those thoughts were absurd to her until she started noticing him everywhere.

He couldn't have been more than eighteen or nineteen years of age. He was this scrawny looking kid who wore clothings that looked bought from thrift shops. He had a terrible haircut and the few times that Olivia would spot him, he was either seen on a skateboard or a bicycle on the other side of the street anywhere Olivia appeared to be, at the most inconvenient time. Surely that couldn't just be a coincidence.

At first, Olivia paid him no mind at all. She thought that he was just some harmless kid until she was given reasons to think otherwise. She had been on a friend's night out with Fitz, Abby, Quinn, Cece, Harrison and Stephen when she spotted him outside the restaurant's windows taking pictures of them. Olivia couldn't freak out right then. With Harrison, Fitz and Abby around, Olivia was sure that if she pointed the kid out to either one of them, they would murder the kid and she'd be an accomplice to a homicide. Before she risked getting herself and her friends incarcerated and possibly ruining their lives, she needed concrete evidence.

Little did she know, she would find that evidence three days later.

Olivia had purposely gone to her Pilates class later in the evening instead of her usual morning routine to throw him off. And after stopping for her regular veggie shake at Liquiteria, a little smoothie places on 9th avenue, she gave him the slip next to a corner liquor store. Going inside, Olivia bought a bottle of cheap wine and emerged from the back of the store as opposed to the front door where she had went in.

Olivia watched him look lost and confused, even freaking out a little bit when he could no longer spot her and that was the moment when Olivia decided that she needed some fucking answers from this kid.

She caught him off-guard and he nearly bust his ass off his skateboard when she grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him into a secluded alley that reeked with the smell of piss. His heart rate picked up and his eyes grew wide with fear.

"You been looking for me, kid?" Olivia asked.

He looked more than scared when Olivia smashed the cheap bottle of wine she's just purchased at the liquor store against the wall over his head. The red liquid dripped down the wall, most of it soaked through the cement while some on it landed on the floor along with the shards of glass. She held the neck of the broken bottle with a death grip between her and the kid's throat.

"Who are you and why the fuck have you been following me?" She asked.

Hands up in surrender over his head, the kid pleaded with Olivia. "Please don't hurt me."

Though clearly shaken with fear, through it all, he never once looked at Olivia in the eyes. Olivia guessed that he was either extremely anti-social or very autistic. She was betting the latter.

 _"You'd better start talking, right now!"_ Olivia seethed.

"Okay. Okay." He nodded vigorously. When he started speaking, he spoke really fast in as little words as possible, almost as if the world would end once he ran out of words. "My name is Silas McLaughlin, and I'm a photography major at NYU. A few weeks ago this guy approached me at an exhibit at the museum of art while I was on a date and offered me a job. At first, I didn't really want to do it because that's not the kind of work I do… I mean, not the kind of photography I take but I'm a broke college student with a very sick mother at home to take care of and I could do with the extra cash he was offering. So I agreed. I didn't know why he needed me to take those pictures. I just assumed you were his wife cheating on him with that white dude I've seen you with all the time and he was just too cheap to hire a real private investigator."

Realization dawned on Olivia when she realized that the white dude Silas was referring to was Fitz. He's not only been following her and taking her pictures. Pictures of her friends were being taken too during their outings.

"Son of a bitch!" Olivia muttered angrily. "Can you describe the guy that gave you the job?"

Silas nodded and went on to describe Edison Davis to a T.

"Where are the pictures you took?" Olivia asked him.

"They're on my phone, in my pocket." He replied. "I upload the pictures from ICloud and print them off at the end of each day."

 _'Oh, that's just great!'_ Olivia thought. She wanted so badly to slap this kid upside the head. There was no telling what kinds of pictures he'd taken of her. Pissed off didn't even begin to cover just exactly what Olivia was.

"Give me your phone." Olivia said, her voice eerily cold and calm.

Silas slowly reached in his pocket for the phone and handed it to Olivia. He rattled off the four digit passcode that was on it to her and pleaded with her once again. "Please don't hurt me."

As angry as Olivia was, she didn't plan to touch a hair on his head. Not unless he tried something stupid.

She took the phone from him and tucked it inside the pocket of her sweater. "Silas, look at me."

With a lot of difficulty and a little bit of time, Silas managed to make eye contact with Olivia. His eyes were a beautiful shade of hazel with little specks of green swimming in them. And up close, his shaggy brown hair didn't look so bad at all. He was a good looking kid overall.

"You're gonna delete your ICloud account tonight, do you understand me?" Olivia said very slowly. "After tonight, you are done following me. _In fact, you're fired_. And if I ever catch you tailing me and taking pictures of me and my friends again, I'll make sure the next place you end up at is in a bus heading upstate straight to sing-sing in handcuffs where you will be picked at for being a little creep and your life as you know it will be over! You can kiss your sick mother goodbye, along with that scholarship you're riding on at NYU and I'll make sure that your life is hell even after you're done serving your time in lock up. I. Will. Destroy. You, kid. And before you call bullshit and try to think of ways to outsmart me, I want you to know that I do not lie. I always do what I promise. Do you understand what I'm saying to you, Silas?"

Silas stood there against the cement wall shitless petrified with the fear of God put into him. He was sweating profusely and what was missing for him to urinate all over himself wasn't much.

"O-okay!" He stuttered. "I-I'll do anything you want. I'll delete the account. I'll stop following you. You'll never see me again." He promised.

"Good." Olivia released the tight grip she had on him and took a step back from him. She dropped the sharp piece of glass she held in defense towards him to the floor. "Get out of here, Silas." She said. "Do a magic trick and make yourself disappear out of my sight."

Still, the poor frightened kid stood frozen against the cement wall, unable to move as if he was stuck in quicksand. Before today, Silas had never met a woman so badass. She just handled him like a gangster. It felt like something straight out of the Godfather and he couldn't get his legs to move because in his mind, as soon as he moved, he was getting a bullet in the back of his head, execution style. He was too young. He had a bright future ahead of him despite his upbringing. He wasn't ready to die.

So he stayed plastered against the wall, asking for forgiveness for his sins. Olivia who was almost on the brink of tears, with anger stomped her feet hard on the concrete ground to help him get a move on because she couldn't understand why he was still staring at her with this look on his face after she told him to leave. "GO!" She screamed.

Silas didn't let himself be told twice. He figured if he ran fast enough, he could outrun a bullet if one was indeed coming for him as soon as he turned his back. He waited for it and nothing came. It wasn't until Silas was on the train did he finally take a deep breath. He was done with New York City. He was going to move to Wisconsin with his aunt where he could never be found.

…

Once Olivia got home, she barely bothered with a shower. As soon as she unlocked the door to her apartment, she jumped straight to her laptop and plugged Silas's phone to the device. Almost instantly, a copy of Silas's phone drive popped on her laptop screen and she accessed the little popping icon to see what it contained.

Ove five-hundred pictures came through the screen and Olivia sat down, horror clouding over her face as she flipped through every single one of them. Hot tears brimmed the back of her eyes as she begin to feel anger rising up in her veins again. That son of a bitch has had her followed; watched: her every movement scrutinized by some college kid who didn't know any better. Her friends were brought into this mess against their consent. Intimate moments that she's shared with them all captured in some form for this freak to see. And for what?!

Olivia couldn't stomach any of it anymore. She printed a few of the pictures and stuffed them into an envelop as evidence along with Silas's phone before she grabbed her keys and left for the police station. If she didn't put a stop to this right now, Olivia had a terrible feeling that she was going to live to regret not taking the right course of action in order to end it all.

* * *

 _A week later…_

* * *

Olivia was just leaving her apartment with Abby and Quinn for a night out in the town when out of nowhere, he jumped out of a black sedan across the street from her apartment building. He was coming towards her off balance, his skin smelled like he had been soaking in a pool of whiskey for weeks. She barely recognized him at first. He spotted a terrible beard, his hair grew big enough into an afro and his clothes were absolutely disheveled. He looked worse than the last time Olivia saw him.

"No." Olivia muttered under her breath, shaking her head. "NO!" She repeated, this time louder. Almost screaming it from the top of her lungs. "Abby, call 9-1-1."

"I just wanna talk." Edison slurred.

He carried a manila envelop with him as he continued to stumble towards her.

"Call the damn cops, Abby!" Olivia said again.

As he balanced towards her on weak legs, Olivia took a step back and so did Abby and Quinn. God, he reeked.

"I just wanna fucking talk!" Edison screamed loud enough to stop traffic and attract the attention of a few pedestrians. "This is exactly what your damn problem is! You never fucking listen to nogoddamnbody! What is wrong with you?!" He growled.

Abby reached for her phone and started dialing the three digits for the authorities. This man was fucking crazy and there was no way in seven hells she was going to let Edison Davis take another step towards her and her friends.

"No please," Hands in the air in surrender, Edison pleaded with Abby not to call the police. Looking at Olivia, he begged her with his tired eyes for just a minute of her ear, to hear him out. "I just wanna talk." He said.

"You take another step and I'm pressing the call button." Abby swore.

"Okay," Edison agreed dejectedly.

He then looked at Olivia again. There was so much sadness in his eyes, so much exhaustion in his body and then suddenly, out of nowhere, he burst into a river of tears.

"You took a restraining order against me, Liv."

Seeing those tears running down his face in huge droplets, Olivia almost felt sorry for him. Then she remembered what happened the last time she let her guard down and let herself feel sympathy for him. She swore to herself to never make that mistake again.

"Exactly what would you have me do after you showed up to my parent's house and physically assaulted me?" This piece of information was breaking news to the ears of a particular redhead and Olivia could feel the daggers that Abby was shooting at the side of her head but she continued addressing Edison anyways. "What would you have me do after you've had me followed and watched for weeks by some scared college kid?" Olivia yelled. "You tell me if the roles were reversed, what would you have done?!"

Edison looked distraught and exhausted. Like a man fighting a battle that he knows is already lost with a one man army - his demons his only helper.

"Can't you see that I'm trying to get you back, Olivia?" He questioned, as if his intentions should be very obvious to her. "All I want is another chance to prove to you that I can be better for us; that somewhere in there, I'm still the man you once loved and trusted. That we could be to each other what we once were." His voice faded; a clear sign of his defeatedness. "I just want another chance."

Olivia's heart broke for him despite how hard she was trying not to feel anything for him at that very moment. She wasn't a monster or some cold hearted bitch that's able to just shut down when it suits her. Seeing him was hurting her. The thought that she used to know the man that Edison Davis used to be brought her great sadness now that she was looking at him and what became of him. He was a shell of the person he used to be. He was a sad, sad man, lost in such a big world all by himself, with nothing, no one, on a very dangerous path to self-destruction. It truly pained Olivia because she couldn't save him; not even if she wanted to. She could forgive the things he did to her; hell if it would make a difference right now, in this very moment, she could honestly say that she'd already forgiven Edison Davis. But she couldn't save him. He had to want that all for himself and put in the work to build himself back up. He had to do it for himself. Not for her or anyone else. But for himself.

"There is no us, Edison." Olivia said. "There never was."

Talk about kicking a man when he's down. Olivia didn't want to do it but it's what had to be done. He was spiraling out of control and he had prolonged into stalkerish behavior so she felt the need to make her feelings clear to him. She. Didn't. Want. Him. Anymore. Not even if he got better. With those seven words, she managed to shatter the rest of Edison's heart into tiny pieces of dust, gone with the wind as if he never had a beating heart to begin with, just as much as there never was a them.

"How does it feel to know that you have ruined someone who once used to be a powerful, respected man, Olivia?" Edison asked, chuckling brokenheartedly. He could barely do his damn job. Now he just clocks in for a few hours, and spends the day in his office getting drunk before clocking out to get even more drunk. He no longer had aspirations. He used to want to be somebody. With his political savviness and knowledge, Edison Davis once dreamed of running for Senate but those dreams were far behind him because now, all his energy was poured into fixing what he'd broken. All his energy was drained on trying to get Olivia Pope back! He was exhausted and the little bitch doesn't even want to acknowledge his efforts. He was running out of options, out of moves, out of the last shreds of his damn energy. "Are you proud of yourself? Do you finally fell like something important? Has the puppy finally found its bark and grow into a big dog? All my efforts to try and prove to you that we could make this work are shit! You haven't even acknowledged them because you're too busy WHORING yourself out to that white, cracker son of a bitch! YOU'VE RUINED A GOOD MAN AND YOU DON'T EVEN SEEM TO CARE! ARE YOU HAPPY, OLIVIA?"

Olivia's heart continued to break for him even as he rattled off a bunch of non-sense. Although, she should feel happy because karma had gotten him back and served her a great dose of justice on a shiny silver platter; Olivia didn't take pleasure in seeing him like this. He was wrong. So wrong. She didn't feel powerful or proud. Instead looking at him standing approximately twenty feet away from her, Olivia pitied him more than anything. And as for whoring herself out to Fitz, she blacked that part out completely because clearly, that drunk didn't know what the fuck he was talking about.

"Take care of yourself, Edison." Olivia said. "Because the next time you show up at my doorsteps again, I can't promise to be so generous and listen to you again. You've said all that you needed to say and I want you to know that you were heard and although I pity you, I still stand behind my choice to have left you when I did and also, I stand behind my decision to have gotten that restraining order against you. I wish you to get well with all the luck. I have a feeling that you're gonna need it."

With that said, Olivia hailed a cab and all three of the girls hopped in, wanting to get as far away from the basket case that's Edison Davis, as quickly as remotely possible. As Olivia boarded the cab, she could hear him calling out her name.

 _"… Olivia…"_

She gave the driver Mike's address in Brooklyn and he took off, running the meter.

"… Oliviaaaaaaaa!" Edison roared one last time, falling to his knees in defeat.

Olivia heard his screams all the way down to the stoplight two block away.

"Somebody, please **explain** to me what the fuck just happened, right goddamn now!" Abby requested, staring at Olivia who looked in desperate need of a drink.

888

* * *

With the end of summer approaching and a new school year starting for Olivia, this was the most spontaneous thing Fitzgerald Grant had ever done. On a Friday night in mid August, Fitz sat in a booth at a steakhouse diner in Manhattan with his favorite girl and listened over good wine as Olivia told him her plans for the last few weeks of her long vacation.

"I've never been out of the country." Fitz confessed.

Olivia stopped mid-chew on her medium rare steak to gaze up at Fitz with a look of surprise. "Never?" She questioned.

"Never." Fitz replied.

"That's no way for a man to live." Olivia teased.

Her mind was made up and in the spare of the moment, she just blurted it out.

"Come to Spain with me."

A smirk on his lips, Fitz reached for his glass of wine and took a healthy sip of the red beverage. "Just like that?" He asked.

Olivia nodded as a matter of fact. "Yeah. Just like that." She simply said.

And when she looked back up at Fitz, Olivia had the distinct impression that he thought she was joking with him.

"I mean it." She said. And just to prove how serious she was, she added. "I'll buy you a plane ticket."

At that, Fitz straightened his spine, ready to turn down her kind offer even though he knew he would be absolutely saddened by her departure. After all, who will he break state laws with in the middle of the night? But before he could even get it to it, Olivia was obviously ahead of him. She didn't even allow Fitz a second to form his words because she was already too busy convincing him to come with her.

"It seriously would be easier and much more fun to have you with me. I was planning to tour at least five cities in two weeks but if you agree to go with me, we could just go to Ibiza instead. We can rent a house on the beach in the village and you can grill kabobs and I can make sangrias. Think of how much fun it would be! We can do a tourist tour, visit museums and attraction parks, get a tan, go fishing… whatever. We can even get our portraits painted by some eighty five years old grandpa on a cane. It'll look hideous but at least it'll be like our little souvenir from the trip. We can even go dancing for a night if I can get you drunk enough on sangrias."

Fitz chuckled. She was rambling and she looked so damn cute. Fitz didn't know how he was supposed to argue against going when she already had a whole itinerary planned for them. She pitched him what sounded like a great time so now, he absolutely had to go. If not for a bronze tan on the beach, then for the kabobs he'll apparently be grilling. Goddamn persuasive woman!

"When do we leave?" Fitz asked.

Olivia looked at him and she had an expression on her face that read: "that easy?" because she wasn't expecting Fitz to agree this quickly. Although, if she had to spend all night convincing him, she would have.

"Whenever is good for you." Olivia replied.

She wanted to accommodate best with his schedule. After all, he had a business to run. He couldn't just up and leave without talking to his staff first. Olivia wanted to give him time to get his affairs in order but if it was up to her, they could catch the first plane out tomorrow morning.

This all fell perfectly. Since a new week was starting soon, Fitz was sure he had time to change the schedules and talk to his staff. Surely, they could handle the gym without his presence for a couple of days and besides, he had someone he could trust to handle business for him. He had Stephen.

"How about Wednesday next week?" Fitz replied.

Oh, very well then.

"Works for me." Olivia smiled. She reached for her glass of wine on the table and raised it up in a toast. "Vamos a España!" She said excitedly.

Fitz laughed; unbelievably captivated by the amount of cuteness she possessed. He too reached for his glass of wine and winked at her. "Show off." He teased.

Leaning forward, Olivia clinked their glasses together and winked back at him. "Salud."

"Salud." Fitz echoed.

And to that, they both took a long sip of their wine. They were going to Spain!

…

Later found Olivia on her laptop, looking up tickets. Fitz was on speaker with her over the phone as she searched up flights leaving for Spain on Wednesday evening.

"Which do you prefer?" Oliva begin, "Window seats or…"

"Doesn't matter, Fireball." Fitz replied. "I just want you next to me."

"You say that to all the girls or just me?" Olivia teased.

She was aware of their little flirting but it was within boundaries.

"What other girls?" Fitz feigned ignorance. "I can't believe we're really doing this." He said.

"Doing what?" Olivia asked.

"Just upping up and leaving for Spain in four days. Do people really do this?" Fitz asked.

Olivia chuckled on her end. "I think the better question is, why don't people do this often enough?" She replied. "We're going to Spain, Ace! And it's going to be great!" She said strongly.

Fitz could do nothing more than share her excitement. "It's going to be great." He agreed.

It really was.


	8. Chapter 8

So, picture this…

Waking up in the morning knowing that for the next two weeks of her life, everything is going to feel like paradise. Olivia could picture it all with her eyes wide open. Spain, the heat; the smell of olive branches in the village; white sand; clear water; blue skies. She could picture Fitz in nothing but a pair of swim trunks, running after her around the beach because she pulled some mischievous prank on him. She could picture Fitz taking her dancing; Fitz grilling kabobs. She could almost taste paradise in those sangrias. She could picture them drunk together over a bonfire, cuddled up outside on the beach and swapping stories while watching the stars up above. She could picture them just living life.

This has been what Olivia's been looking forward to since she purchased those tickets. She's kept Fitz on the phone almost every night, going over itineraries and plans for all the activities they planned on indulging in during their stay overseas. Those conversations always lasted hours up until the very day they were supposed to board the plane. Today was that day.

Bags are packed and she's riding in the back of a taxi to the airport with a goofy grin on her lips. Her heart is thumping in her chest from too much excitement but she can't seem to be bothered because all Olivia Pope can see is two glorious weeks in Spain with her best friend.

Because it is New York after all, evening traffic as always is a bitch but that also didn't bother Olivia the least bit. She was anxious to see Fitz to the point where she didn't know what to do with herself. Though they've spent every day leading to their trip talking on the phone, Fitz's schedule hasn't really allowed them to see much of each other since Sunday. The anticipation was killing her.

Finally, after the thirty-five minutes ride to JFK, Olivia is standing in front of the airport with a large suitcase before her. With the comings and goings out of the airport, Olivia sees over hundreds of faces in the span of a minute but none of them matter because she's only searching for one particular face; one particular pair of striking, clear, cornflower blue eyes. It takes her a few minutes but eventually, in the midst of a thousand other faces and voices, she hears him when he calls her name; towering over multiple people so that she can make him out. And even though Olivia can't quite see his face yet, she knows it's him because the sound of his voice is unmistakable to her. It's unique. And besides, no one else in the entire world calls her _Fireball_. Except for him.

The front of the airport starts to clear up a little bit as more people hop into cabs or private vehicles. And when she finally makes him out in the plentiful crowd surrounding them, Olivia stills. The wheels of her luggage comes to a halting stop and for just _one minute_ , everything else around them ceased to exist. She can only see him and her breath is knocked out of her lungs because he's something else that she doesn't let herself dwell on too much when it comes to him.

 _He's so handsome. So beautiful._

He looks overworked and under slept, spotting three day's worth of stubble on his cheeks but in Olivia's eyes, he's never looked more gorgeous. They're even matching. He's wearing a pair of dark washed up jeans, a white V-neck t-shirt that clings to all the muscles of his upper body and a pair of navy blue chukka boots. He has one duffel bag slinging over one shoulder and he's beaming at her like the brightest star in the sky. He's beautiful and Olivia found that in that moment, he makes her a little bit breathless.

Olivia doesn't realize that he has moved until she's in his arms and he's hugging her so tight, she can barely breathe. But that doesn't matter to her either because she's hugging him just as tight, as though they haven't seen each other for a lifetime. And just like that, another _epiphany_ amongst the infinite amounts that is sure to occur hit Olivia as she's enveloped in his arms. _He doesn't have to be far away for too long - no matter what, she always misses him_. Olivia didn't know what to make of it. All she knew was that she felt the most alive she's ever been in his arms, in that very moment.

When they finally pull away from their embrace, they wore similar smiles.

"Is it weird to say that I missed you?" Fitz asked.

Fitz's heart was slowly melting. He's been counting down the seconds until he could finally see her and now that she's actually in his arms, he didn't know what to do with himself. But after the last couple of days he's had, she's exactly what his soul needed. And he can't believe that they're standing at an airport about to board a plane on a spontaneous vacation to Spain. It's crazy. _They're crazy_. He's nervous, excited, overwhelmed but also so damn happy.

Fitz takes a moment to scan Olivia's face and he's mesmerized with her natural beauty as always. Her face is makeup free and she's rocking out her natural curls in that way that he absolutely loves. She was so beautiful and they were going to Spain to spend two weeks together in paradise, away from the rest of the world. The fire in the pit of Fitz's stomach only grew bigger. He didn't know if he was going to be able to control himself. He didn't know how he was going to keep up the charade of pretending if she was going to look so beautiful all the time over the next two weeks.

But he was smiling. He was way too excited to not be.

Smiling back at him, Olivia rose on the tip of her toes and kissed his cheek. "I missed you too, Ace." She told him.

All Fitz can do is smile too. Grabbing Olivia's suitcase from her, he wrapped his free arm around her neck and just like that, they proceeded towards the airport to check in.

"You're excited?" Fitz asked.

Olivia nodded, looking up at him. "Two weeks in Spain with you, of course I'm excited." She replied.

Kissing her forehead, Fitz grinned. "Me too." He admitted. "But only cause it's Spain though." He teased.

That earned him a smack in the chest and a tweaking to his nipple.

"Ow!" Fitz screeched. "Why are you always so abusive to me, Livvie" He pouted, rubbing his chest.

Olivia rolled her eyes. "Maybe if you weren't such a _stronzo_ all the time, I wouldn't be." She said sassily.

Once again, all Fitz could do was smile. The student has surpassed the teacher and he couldn't be more proud. Even when she was calling him an asshole.

…

After they checked out at the airline desk and went through security, they headed to a quaint mini bar/bistro right near their gate that served a mean burger and fries. Upon learning that neither of them has had a proper dinner before boarding a very long flight, Fitz had suggested they find some place to eat and have a few drink while killing time until they board their plane. Obviously, it was a great idea because Olivia was savoring ever last bite of that delicious burger she ordered. Following dinner and a few glasses of wine, they walked seamlessly around the airport, checking out every store Olivia wanted to.

They went to a little gift shop where Olivia purchased way too much candy and then begged Fitz to get her this huge teddy bear that _she absolutely had to have_. And of course, as soon as she started pouting in that cute way of hers, Fitz pulled out his wallet and purchased the stuffed bear for her.

Happy with their purchase, they were currently walking the halls of the airport hand in hand. Olivia cuddled up with the big teddy bear, completely enamored, while Fitz continued stealing sweets from her candy bag. Everything was great. Wonderful even. But it only took a second for it all to be ruined when Olivia got a phone call.

Frozen on the spot, she placed a hand over her mouth in shock. "Oh my God!" She said to the person at the other end of the line. "Is he gonna be okay?" At that, Fitz's eyes grew impatient. Was somebody in her family injured? A friend perhaps? The look on her face was starting to worry him. He didn't like being out of the loop.

"What's going on?" He mouthed with raised eyebrows.

Instead of answering him, Olivia closed the distance between them and buried her face in his chest - the teddy bear squished in the middle. Now more than ever, Fitz was more worried and he had reasons to be because in a few words, all the hype, and excitement over their trip crumbled and disappointment settled as their trip to Spain fell apart with: _"Okay. I'm on my way."_

…

Now, picture this…

"Thank you, Dr. Burtnett."

In his white coat, Dr. Burtnett gave a curt nod to a dejected Olivia before he dismissed himself in a professional manner. Now perched up against the pasty, white walls at St. Luke's Memorial Hospital, Olivia looked nearly ready to burst into tears as she stared at Fitz across from her.

"Anything I can do?" Fitz asked.

Definitely, the tears were brimming behind Olivia's eyes. She ruined their trip and she couldn't understand why Fitz wasn't flipping out on her at the moment. She didn't understand why he didn't listen to her and board the plane to Spain without her like she told him to. Instead, here he was in this stupid hospital with her. She didn't understand how he could still be so supportive.

"Oh come on, Fireball. Don't do this to me." In seconds, Fitz was in front of her, gathering her up in his arms as sad, angry tears flow down her cheeks. Fitz wiped them away as best he could before cupping her cheeks in his big hands and kissing her forehead comfortingly. "It's okay, sweetheart. I promise." He said reassuringly.

Olivia shook her head stubbornly. "It's not okay though!" She cried. "We were supposed to be on a plane right now. Not in the hospital, hoping that my stupid ex-boyfriend doesn't die at any given minute." Pissed off didn't even begin to describe what Olivia was. She wasn't crying because Edison was hurt and in the hospital. That fact, she was pretty immune to it. She was crying because of how upset she felt for dropping everything; for dropping an expensive trip Spain with her bestest friend to be by the bedside of a man who's treated her like garbage in his hour of need, all because he was stupid enough to get behind the wheels of a car while drunk. Thankfully, no other civilians got hurt as a result to that idiot's recklessness.

"What does it make me that I ruined our trip to be here for him after all that he's done?" Olivia voiced her inner turmoil out loud.

For the life of her, Olivia really couldn't understand why she was here and that angered her even more than anything. After the restraining order Olivia thought she wrote Edison Davis off for good. She thought that she would never have to deal with that sad son of a bitch ever again and yet here she was, in spite of herself, saving him. How twisted can this world get?

Fitz's voice brought her back from her thoughts. His thumb grazed her cheek in a feather light touch as he smiled at her. "That's who you are, Fireball." He told her matter-of-factly. "When someone needs your help, it doesn't matter what they've done to wrong you in the past - you show up for them and do for them what you can anyways." He beamed at her as he said this last part, "It takes impeccable strength to be that kind of person. In my honest opinion, I think that may be the most beautiful part of you." - _It's one of the million reasons why I love you -_ Fitz wanted to add but he didn't dare. This moment was in no way about him. And he bounced back from his thoughts fairly quickly before continuing. "For now, let's just put Spain on the backburner and focus on you." He suggested. "Tell me what you need. Tell me what I can do to help."

Olivia looked at this wonderful man before her in awe and she can't help but shake her head at how unreal he seemed. Puffing out a sigh, she leaned further into his warm, comforting hands and tried to clear her mind. Olivia couldn't ask anything of Fitz and even if she could, there's nothing that he could do about Edison's condition. Though he will be monitored closely throughout the night for unexpected seizures or internal bleeding, the doctor said more than anything his body just needed some time to rest and recover from the trauma. The final verdict was that he would most likely wake up soon. Aside from a few cuts and bruises on his face from the shards of glass from the accident, Edison also suffered a broken leg, three cracked ribs and a severe concussion. He was pretty much bound to be in an extreme amount of pain for the few coming weeks. Eventually, he will be fine but there was nothing she or Fitz could do for him other than wait for him to pull through the night.

He was asking how he could help and Olivia could only think of one thing that would help her feel less upset about missing their trip. "Ridiculous as it's gonna sound?" Olivia prompted.

Fitz nodded. "Anything at all, Fireball." He replied.

Entwining their fingers together, Olivia looked into his beautiful shade of cornflower blue eyes and smiled. She didn't know why, but something about looking into his eyes brought her this great sense of peace. It was something Olivia learned after spending their third night together. She could always count on him to make her feel better. All she ever has to do is look into his eyes. And right now wasn't any different.

 _"Just stand here with me for one minute?"_ She requested almost shyly. " _For just one minute_ … let's pretend that we're already in Spain, sipping on those sangrias and having a good time like we had planned. Let's pretend that we're on our own little land of paradise instead of here in this stupid hospital."

They both chuckled at the last part. An unruly curl fell on Olivia's eyes and they both reached to push it back at the same time. They smiled at each other, realizing just how in sync they were. It should be scary but instead, it felt like what was normal. It felt natural. With both of their hands entwined between them, Fitz placed his forehead against Olivia's and smiled sweetly.

 _"One minute, Fireball."_ He agreed in a soft whisper.

That one minute through his eyes felt like a lifetime. It was the best minute of Olivia's life.

…

Around ten o'clock, Olivia forced Fitz to leave. Even though he wanted to stick around and be with her for however long it took for Edison to wake up, there was no way Olivia was going to agree to that. Neither had any allegiance to Edison. As someone who once was in a relationship with him, Olivia was here out of pity more than anything else.

"Call me if you need anything." Fitz said as Olivia walked him down to the lobby.

Olivia nodded. "I promise." She smiled. "Text me when you get home. And you better not watch the newest episode of _Viking_ without me!"

"I'll try not to, Fireball." Fitz chuckled. And with a kiss to her cheek, he hopped into the back of an Uber to take him home.

After his departure, Olivia stood on the sidewalk hugging herself as the cool night breeze blew through her hair. She didn't know why she missed him so much already. It hasn't even been minutes yet.

A few minutes passed before Olivia returned back inside the hospital. Instead of going straight to Edison's room, she opted to sit in the cafeteria and grab a snack from the vending machines. As she snacked on Oreo cookies and water, she got to thinking. Since she was still Edison's primary emergency contact, she doubted that his mother was contacted by the hospital. That was a call Olivia was dreading to make herself since she got the news that he was admitted to the medical facility. For five minutes, Olivia stared at her screen with the number staring back at her as she continued to munch down on cookies. She browsed JustFab for a new pair of shoes she didn't need; she played candy crush until she became annoyed with herself. She did just about anything to further delay the inevitable. God knows she didn't plan on pulling no _"Diary of a Black Mad Woman"_ and nurse Edison back to health. She was very gracious, alright but not enough to put up with Edison's ass ever again. That train of thought was all it took for her to go back to her contact list and make the phone call she's been putting off. The phone rang twice in her ear, then soon enough, Elaine Davis's annoyed and sleepy voice was booming through her speakers.

…

After the dreadful phone call with Edison's mom, Olivia was riding the elevator back to Edison's room when her phone beeped with an incoming text message.

 **From Ace:**

 **Got home safe, pretty girl!**

That was enough to put a smile on Olivia's face again. Another text came through just as she was about to reply to the first one.

 **A: How are you holding up?**

The elevator doors opened and Olivia almost bumped into a nurse because her face was buried in the screen of her phone and her fingers were busy typing away.

 _F: I'm doing fine. Stop being such a worrywart!_

Seconds later, the phone vibrated in her hand again.

 **A: Stop being such a dork! I'm pretty sure no one has used the word "worrywart" in like a million years.**

 _F: OH BE QUIET!_

To that, he sent her a smiling emoji. Olivia felt compelled to tell him about her cringe worthy conversation with Elaine. So she did.

 **A: Yikes. How'd that go?**

 **A: On second thought, give me 20 minutes and then we can FaceTime. Sound good?**

Olivia smiled widely; excited about the prospect of seeing his handsome face again before the night ended.

She sent back a quick response filled with sass.

 _F: I'M WAITING!_

Finally, Olivia entered Edison's room again and quite like the first time she saw his face when she had arrived at the hospital, her face crunched up in a grimace and a shiver ran down her spine. His face was all swollen and bruised up. He had a few of those butterfly Band-Aids all over. His broken leg was propped up high on the bed so that he was as comfortable as possible with the cast on. She can't imagine his lower chest looked or felt any better. He looked like he was in a lot of pain and even though she tried really hard not to feel bad for him, Olivia truly and genuinely pitied him.

She decided to pull the single recliner near the window next to his bed, more so she could have a view of the TV than to actually keep an eye on him.

Twenty minutes later as promised, Fitz was calling her on FaceTime. She accepted the call after searching in her handbag for a pair of headphones. She smiled when his handsome face appeared on her screen. He looked fresh out of the shower and his hair was a hot mess of chocolate curls that made him look more attractive than ever.

He raised a glass in front of the screen to show her and Olivia's eyes widened.

"Is that a sangria?" She asked.

Fitz shook his head. "Close." He said. "It's a fangria."

Olivia let out a chuckle with raised eyebrows. "What the hell is a fangria?" She inquired curiously.

"It's a fake sangria." Fitz replied and Olivia burst into a fit of laughter so loud, that for a second, she worried that she might've awaken Edison.

Grinning, Fitz continued. "I know this is not Spain or even a real sangria but this is New York and it's a great city. It's also home so that kind of makes it special on its own, right?"

He was such a sweet man. Olivia nearly melted in her seat. She couldn't help the fact that she found him extremely adorable at that exact moment. Smiling, she pointed towards the glass he still held in his hand. "Take a sip for me." She requested.

Fitz did so humming in the sexiest way and Olivia found that the sound made certain parts of her anatomy tingle. Also another thing she was choosing to ignore when it came to his effects on her.

"What's in that thing anyways?" She asked.

"Cranberry juice and seltzer."

"Ew!" Olivia cringed.

Rolling his eyes, Fitz stuck his tongue out to her. "You're ew." He bit back.

Olivia found herself wondering how she was best friends with such a man-child. _A sexy one at that._ Her eyes widened at the thought but once again, she was choosing to brush it off as nothing. It was better than trying to delve into why she was suddenly thinking of her best friend in that way.

Even though it was just a second, Fitz could tell by the expression on Olivia's face that she had retreated to some pensive place in her mind. Though he didn't know what exactly she was thinking about, he made a guess that it might be about her phone call to Edison's mom. After all, that's what he called to discuss with her. So he decided to ask. "What did Edison's mom have to say when you called?"

Olivia groaned the whole time as she recapped the full ten minutes conversation to Fitz. She was just glad that come dawn, she didn't have to see either Edison or his wicked witch mother ever again for the rest of her life.

For the next hour, they talked about everything and nothing. Laughing until the muscles of their stomachs ached and they became breathless as they swapped funny stories. They got to talking about the coming school year and whether or not Olivia was excited about it. Fitz informed her that he put a few plans in motion to see if he could get started on the opening of that club that he dreams of owning one day. Olivia promised to help him however she can. Even after the quiet settled, they still didn't want to leave each other; preferring to hear the sound of each other breathe better instead of going back to the loneliness of their separate housing. So they stayed over the line; on the same channel at their respective locations, they watched a few rerun episodes of _Criminal Minds_ together. Fitz was a fan. Before they knew it, the clock was set at two o'clock in the morning and they were both yawning, beat up from exhaustion of the day. It had been a very long day. Although it didn't end exactly how they both would've preferred, but at the end of it, they still had each other. So that was something to be immensely grateful about.

Olivia didn't know what it was that made her emotional all of the sudden. Maybe it was the exhaustion and her sleepiness but she found herself looking at Fitz through the widescreen of her phone with a certain glow in her eyes. It dawned on her then just how lucky she was to have him in her life. She didn't know many people she would willingly stay on the phone with for this long. Not only that, but she also didn't have many people in her life who cared this much for her; not like Fitz did anyways. He knows she has a great dislike for hospitals from what she's told him.

Before her Nana died, she was slowly chipping away in a hospital bed, not getting any better and begging to go home and die in peace surrounded by her family. It's the most painful memory Olivia has to this day. After having had enough; Olivia decided she wasn't going to watch her grandmother suffer any longer and made the conscious decision to get her Nana out of the hospital herself. She skipped school one day and came to visit. On the pretense of taking her Nana for a walk to get some air, she had wheeled the aging woman out of the hospital and never returned with her. Though she nearly gave her whole entire family a strings of heart attacks, that day was also one of Olivia's best days. She got to enjoy her grandmother wholly for a full day. She got to see her Nana look alive and feel alive for a wonderful, sunny day in the spring before she passed away exactly three months later; in her home, surrounded by her family and friends and those whose lives she continued to impact beyond her grave. It was exactly how she wanted it to be. But even so, it was the first time Olivia Pope truly experienced heartbreak. She was just nineteen years old.

She told Fitz this story once after they got drunk together. He had driven them to his favorite place in all of New York City. A secluded roof top on the hills - where they had opened a blanket and stared at the sky. It felt like so long ago since they shared that moment and most people would've forgotten that conversation considering they were under the influence. But not him. He retained it to memory. He was a great listener and an even better human being.

Olivia Pope would never willingly stay on the phone with anyone for more than an hour but luckily for her, she had an amazing best friend who cared for her beyond any level of comprehension. He knows about her fear and hate of hospitals so instead of doing anything else literally remotely more productive, he stayed on the phone with her, just to make sure she was alright. Just to make sure that the unfortunate memories of her late grandmother didn't haunt her for the night. Olivia didn't know many people who would do such a thing for her. So she was emotional, she was exhausted but above all, she was grateful.

She yawned - another symptom of her fatigue. Nevertheless, she fought to stay awake. "Thank you." She smiled sweetly and sleepily.

Blinking, Fitz ran his fingers through his messy chocolate curls. "For what?" He asked.

 _For what?_

Olivia mulled the simple question on repeat in her head and she came up with a million reasons why she should've been thanking him. This summer should've been so miserable for her but seemingly out of nowhere, he came walking into her life, shinning this blinding light. And since then, she's known nothing but unquestionable happiness. He's made her laugh and smile more times than she can ever count. He's seen her at her worse and that's never made him budge even an inch. He's seen her cry countless times and yet again instead of fleeing like most probably would, he stayed and wiped the tears away. He's proven to be one of the most trust worthy person she knows to life. _And he always shows up_. So, _for what_ , he asked. There weren't nearly enough words in the English language to explain to him _"for what"_ but _**"everything**_ " would have to do his question justice.

"For being you." Olivia finally replied.

Even as tired as he was, she watched his face stretch into the most beautiful smile. He looked like a little boy on Christmas morning being told that all his wishes have come true. Then he simply shrugged, very much in a boyish way and responded. "I don't really know how to be anybody else, Fireball."

And the funny thing was, that's exactly what Olivia knew he would say. He doesn't need to be praised. Anything Fitzgerald Grant does, it's out of the pure goodness of his golden heart; no strings attached.

Smiling back at him, Olivia said, "We should both try and get some sleep."

Of course, Fitz agreed. "Call me later?"

Olivia promised. "Okay."

"Okay."

…

…

…

This was the part where they hung up but still, they remained on the phone, breathing in sync until the very last second when their bodies gave out and succumbed to the exhaustion.

 _"Goodnight, Livvie."_ Fitz murmured seconds before he knocked out.

Eyes closed, a smile on her lips, "Goodnight, Fitz." Olivia replied.

As if on cue, Olivia's phone powered off as soon as they bid each other goodnight. Now cuddled up against the big, fluffy teddy bear that Fitz had gotten her, Olivia settled on the couch for some much needed shut eye.

888

Morning came much too soon.

After only a few hours of sleep on the fairly comfortable couch, Olivia stirred awake by the comings and goings of the morning shift nurses.

Stretching her limbs as far as she could, she then sat up on the couch and pushed her hair out of her face. "How's he doing?"

"Jesus, Mary and Joseph!" The young nurse screeched, her hand flying to her chest in pure surprise. It was really funny so Olivia couldn't exactly help the small smile that creased the corners of her mouth. She apologized for scaring the nurse and in return, the young woman did the same for waking her up.

"Everything looks good." The nurse then went on to inform Olivia. "He's stabilized and normal. He made it through the night just fine so in my professional assessment, I think he should make a good recovery." She spoke softly. "Dr. Burtnett will be in at eleven o'clock. He might authorize to run a few scans just to be sure everything is as seems but I wouldn't worry too much."

Olivia was a lot of things at the moment. For example: Underslept, starving, still pretty damn pissed about missing Spain, in need of a long; hot shower, a nice cup of piping hot tea and the comfort of her bed. Those are just to name a few. But worried about Edison Davis - that she was not.

She chanced a glance at Edison's beat up face and that cold shiver ran down her spine again. He was truly a sight for sore eyes. Thanking the nurse with a curt nod, Olivia then decided to get off the couch and ducked to the adjoining bathroom to freshen up.

When she came back out, the nurse was gone. Olivia decided to open the blinds a little to let some sunlight in. She hated how quiet it was. And even with the blaring arrays of sunlight in the room, she hated how it still felt lifeless. In that moment, she wished to hear Fitz's voice again. _He was full of life_. But she was mindful that they both went to bed pretty late and just because she was already awake unfortunately didn't mean he had to miss out on his much needed eight hours.

Not knowing what to do with herself, Olivia checked her watch. It was almost nine o'clock. She wanted to step out of the hospital for a bit and go grab that cup of hot tea she so desperately yearned for. There was a nice little diner three block away from the hospital and she figured if she wasn't going to get enough sleep today, the least she could do was treat herself to a nice breakfast. All too eagerly, she begin to exit the room when she heard the sound of his gravelly voice.

"You came."

He sounded rough and though he spoke barely above a whisper, it was enough to scare the crap out of Olivia. She whipped her head and saw that he was trying to sit up even though he clearly couldn't. She looked at his monitor and saw his BP rising a little bit. A good person would've ran to his side instantly to offer some assistance. A good person would've filled a cup with some water and popped a straw in it for him to sip, in order to help him better his voice. A good person would've gotten a nurse to come to his aid as soon as he awoke. But gracious didn't necessarily mean good.

Olivia didn't even make a move to approach him. She didn't trust him and she had all the reasons in the world not to.

"You have three broken ribs, a broken leg and a severe concussion." She informed him of his prognosis with no hint of sympathy in her voice.

But for some reason unknown to Olivia, he was smiling.

"Is that what the doctors said?" He asked.

"Yes. So stop hurting yourself because you're trying to impress me." She said sharply. Olivia also wanted to add - _I stopped being impressed by you a long time ago._ But she figured it was still a bit too early for pettiness.

Nodding, Edison simply continued to stare at her until it became a little uncomfortable and a lot awkward.

"I'm sorry." He finally said.

Olivia who had been looking at her feet and effectively zoning him out thought she had heard him wrong. Looking up, she raised her eyebrows at him in question. "What?"

Clearing his voice in hopes of being better heard, Edison repeated. "I said I'm sorry." He waited for a reaction from Olivia but none came. Instead, he got a brush off.

"Let's not do this Edison." Olivia shook her head. He was doped up on morphine and to be completely honest, Olivia didn't want to have to feel any sympathy for him. Sooner or later, something was bound to happen to him with the way he always reeked of booze. So a shitty apology was not what Olivia was looking for. What she wanted was to not be here. What she wanted was to already be in Spain with Fitz. But alas, she wasn't. Instead, she spent hours in this fucking hospital for him; precious hours she will never get back. She didn't want no damn apology! So before he could continue, she decided to cut him off and nip whatever manipulation trick he was trying to pull in the bud. "I called your mom late last night. She should be here any minute. I'll stay until she gets here but this… whatever this is that you're trying to pull, we're not gonna do it."

It's like nothing she said to him registered because he then added; "You must really hate me." He sounded hurt. Though Olivia couldn't really distinguish whether or not that was real. She's come to believe that nothing about this man is ever genuine. He's a manipulative son of a cunt. "You can't even stand to look at me; to see the sight of me. So, I'm saying _"I'm sorry"_ for whatever really terrible thing I've done to you."

Olivia couldn't believe her ears. She blinked several times to make sure that she wasn't hallucinating from lack of sleep. But she wasn't. This was real. "For whatever really terrible thing you've done to me?" She repeated. Suddenly, a bout of hysterical laughter escaped Olivia's mouth and she had to grip the wall behind her for support. "Have you lost your mind? Did you hit your head harder than they thought?" Those were the only reasonable explanation Olivia could come up with. Because how can one person be so damn egotistical?

"I forgive you, Liv." Edison continued.

As soon as those words escaped his mouth, Olivia knew that she needed to get the fuck away from him. She needed to get as far away from this hospital and she needed to do so as quickly as humanly possible. All thoughts of a healthy breakfast forgotten, Olivia walked towards the single couch she slept on the previous night to gather her belongings. Then, she went to the small closet in the room to wheel out her suitcase.

"We're done here." She mumbled, not even bothering to acknowledge him any longer.

That only frustrated him more. Being ignored was not something Edison Davis liked. He was a man and goddamn it, he will have his way because God forbid he didn't!

"Cut the shit, Liv!" He exclaimed, loud enough to make Olivia jump. He was frustrated to no end. And being bound to this goddamn hospital bed didn't help his case much. He was going to watch his last ditch effort to get her back go to waste and he would have none of it. He threw his working arm up in resignation and he felt the pain all the way down to the last fiber of his every being. But he pushed through the pain anyways. "Aren't you tired of this charade?" He asked. "I mean goddamn it, Liv! Why can't you see that I love you? Why can't you see that everything I do, I do it for you?!"

Stuffing her toiletries back in her suitcase, Olivia chuckled humorlessly. "How gracious of you." She said sarcastically. She couldn't get out of that room fast enough.

"I forgive you for abandoning me like _he_ did!" Edison blurted. His voiced cracked and Olivia didn't know what it was that made her look up at him but when she did, she saw that tears were pooling behind his eyes. "I'm exhausted Liv and I forgive you." Edison repeated. "I forgive you for the restraining order. I know you didn't mean those nasty, ill-mannered things you said to me the last time we saw each other. I forgive everything that's happened between us these last few months. Let's just write it off as a mistake and then you can come back to me. _Where you belong_."

A series of emotions ran through Olivia. Rage being the most powerful one and she just… snapped. "I DON'T BELONG TO YOU!" She screamed. "Snap out of it Edison. I'M NOT YOURS! I sure as hell am not your father either! I didn't abandon you and you need to stop. JUST… STOP!" At this point, Olivia was hyperventilating. She felt like she was being suffocated and she just couldn't! Oh my God. If she thought she'd chosen wrong before, the definition for what Edison Davis was just got a lot more complicated. He was beyond unhinged and now more than ever, Olivia felt like the stupidest woman to have ever walked the face of the earth.

She begin wheeling out her suitcase behind her. She got to the door and her hand was on the knob of the door when he said it. The words that shocked her and told her that Edison Davis was absolutely, one hundred percent fucking crazy.

"I knew you'd come." He said smugly. Here comes some more of the psychotic manipulation. "The same way that I know that you still love me despite what you say. And you're right, I do need help and with you, I can do it. Can't you see, Liv? I was betting - no… I was _hoping_ you'd come. That was my sign and you did…"

At some point between all of his ramblings, Olivia zoned out again. The room was spinning with her and four words continued to run on a loop in her mind. _I knew you'd come._ He knew. _It was his sign_. And then it all hit her like a ton of bricks. _He did this to himself on purpose._

She's his primary emergency contact so if something were to happen to him - like a car accident in which he sustained a severe concussion, three broken ribs and a broken leg - of course she would be immediately notified. He did this to himself purposely and gambled on her showing up for him and like the idiot that she is, she did.

 _Rage._ So much rage. Olivia was visibly shaking on the spot. Turning her head to look at him on the bed, she could feel tears starting to gather behind her eyes. She was bubbling with so much rage, so much anger, so when she spoke to him, she barely recognized her own voice. "What did you do?" She asked, eyeing him like a monster. "What the fuck did you do?!" She exclaimed. Feeling completely disoriented, Olivia blinked back her tears and smoothed her fingers through her hair. "You're fucking mental." She concluded.

And just when she thought that this damn morning couldn't get any worse, in walked Elaine Davis.

…

The arrogant woman didn't even acknowledge her existence. As soon as she walked in the room, the elder woman dropped her luggage dramatically on the floor and ran to her son's bedside.

"My baby!" Elaine cried, touching and kissing Edison's face all over. "Oh look at you, honey! _You look so finished_." Grabbing Edison's sling-free arm, she felt his wrist. She could feel his bones beneath her fingers. Apparently that's what it took for her to finally acknowledge Olivia's presence. The woman gave Olivia a glance from head to toe with a look equivalent to disgust in her eyes.

In the past, that look _used to kill_ Olivia on the inside. It used to make her feel like _the absolute shit_ of the earth because obviously, she was seeking approval. She was naïve, insecure and she wanted _mommy dearest_ of Edison Davis' to think she was enough. To like her. But now, today, as that look was once again begin directed at her for the _absolute_ last time _ever_ , Olivia felt nothing. She's had about e-fucking-nough! In the past, she would cower, shrink to a smaller version of herself in the name of respect but not anymore. Today, she too held the same look of disgust and shame for the woman who raised this sick son of a bitch whom she gave two precious years of her life to. She was going toe-to-toe with Elaine Davis if it's the last thing she did.

Then she had the guts, the fucking audacity to open her mouth and address Olivia. "Have you not been taking care of my son, Olivia?"

That was the final straw. Olivia grabbed her suitcase and wheeled it out the door with her. Her steps gradually increased when she heard the clicking sound of heels following after her.

"HAVE SOME RESPECT!" Elaine shouted after her down the vacant hallway. Olivia was too fast for her. And she was old. _Fuck_ , she was grown and she will not chase after some girl who clearly was no good for her dearest son. "I'm trying to talk to you about my child so YOU WILL stop and HEAR me!"

And Olivia did stop. A decision she very much would regret minutes later.

Shaking her head, Olivia faced an approaching Elaine who wore a look of disdain and judgement for her. "You Davis people are fucking something else." She said.

Frowning at her crass language - which in her mighty opinion was unbecoming of a woman - Elaine scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest as she stood tall in front of Olivia. "I could say the same about you." She said. "Everyone knows that the place of a woman is next to her man in his time of need. My child is in there in pain and yet, you have your suitcase rolling after you. You're leaving my child behind for dead."

Olivia rolled her eyes. " _Your child_ is not a baby and I'm not leaving him for dead. _I'm leaving, period_." She said. "He's not my responsibility! I was here as a _courtesy_ and now that you are here, I see no reason to stay longer than necessary."

The sheer horror that crossed Elaine's face was comical at best. Her eyebrows kissed in a frown and her lips was set in a tight disapproving line. "I know Eddie said that you were having some problems but I didn't think it was that bad that you would leave him on his sick bed."

It was in that instant that another truth settled for Olivia and she found herself crossing her arms over her chest much like Elaine as a smirk played on her lips. "He didn't tell you, did he?" She gloated. Oh this was good! This was glorious. Maybe this morning won't end on such a shitty note after all. Elaine Davis was about to learn some very hard, bitter truth about her son today. Elaine Davis was about to learn that her dearest son didn't amount to dog shit!

"Let me tell you a little something about your _"baby dearest"_ ," Olivia begin. "Your son ain't shit!" She blurted and to have those words leave her mouth and released into the air that Elaine Davis breathed was the greatest thing Olivia's ever done. The contentment that came with saying those words lifted such a laden on her shoulders and it set her tongue loose to speak all the words she's dreamed of ever saying to that nasty, judgmental, bitter, egotistical woman! "Your son is a cheating piece of shit." Olivia added. " _Wait… no._ Actually, he's a manipulating, psychopathic, cheating piece of garbage. Now if you will excuse me, I need to go back to living my life."

"How dare you speak about my son in this manner?!" Elaine barked. "I know every couple has their differences. Hell, it's in every man's nature to step out of a committed relationship and stray every once in a while but that doesn't mean that you leave." She spoke so seriously that Olivia couldn't even fool herself into thinking that this woman was joking for even a second. "You oughta learn how to compromise. My son loves you! If you'd done _your job_ how you were supposed to, he would've put a ring on your finger long ago despite what I would've said."

 _Oh my God._

Olivia was feeling so much. Shocked, appalled, disgusted, sorry for that excuse of a woman standing before her. Her jaw just about hung to the floor as she continued to stare at Elaine Davis blankly. Then the words settled and Olivia can't help the laughter that boomed out of her chest. This woman before her was a goddamn joke! Now Olivia understood Elaine better. Olivia got where Elaine's deep sense of hatred and disgust came from because Olivia imagined when Elaine looked at her, Elaine saw that she was nothing like her and had no desire to ever be anything like her. Some washed up, wanna-be stepford-wife.

"What's so funny?" Elaine asked confrontingly.

"Compromise?" Olivia raised her eyebrows. "Is that what you did for Edson all these years? No matter what he did, you just compromised, right? You opened your legs a little wider and gave away the most important bits and pieces of your soul? But except, at the end of the day, that wasn't enough for him was it?" Olivia was ripping the woman an entirely new asshole with each words that escaped her mouth and it was heavenly. Olivia knew of the weight that those words held and how they impacted the older woman. Still that wasn't enough to stop her. She was on a roll and Elaine was visibly shook and popping a vein. "I don't know what era you think it is, but this is the fucking twenty-first century, lady. Get real with your compromising bullshit!" Olivia raised her voice. "Clearly, it didn't work out so well for you but you know what? _It's okay_. Because now, I understand you better. I understand why you're so goddamn bitter all the time. You compromised and yet, Edson still chose booze over you and your crazy freaking son!"

The next thing that happened was straight out of a soap opera. The climactic music was in the background, the anger was radiating in mist and the devil literally appeared, pulled a chair and sat the fuck down for the showdown. Elaine had enough. Her heart has never thumped faster or harder than it was in that instant. Her eyes were never redder or wider. Her blood pressure never so high. Her feelings never more hurt. And she snapped!

Olivia expected some sort of back-lash, of course. She expected to be called every dirty name in the history of the universe. She expected to be just as disrespected as she was disrespecting Elaine to her face. But when she felt that sting across her cheek… when the sound of those five fingers laying across her cheeks echoed to her ears, she found herself in a period of temporary disbelief as she tasted the blood in her mouth.

"You spiteful little bitch!" Elaine exclaimed, her voice clouded with raw, painful emotions. "How dare you!"

The previously vacant hallway then started to fill up as curiosity got the better of a few nosey nurses and interns.

Bringing a hand to her flaming face, Olivia rubbed the reddening spot in a soothing manner as she sucked in her teeth. Looking up at the woman who dared to lay her hands on her, Olivia slowly begin closing into her space, effectively causing Elaine to push back into a wall. Now framed between her and the wall, Olivia looked into the older woman's wide brown eyes and begin speaking very slowly. "Your son came into my life and played with my heart like it was some sort of game. I gave him _two fucking years of my life_ and all I have to show for it is the worst kind of betrayal and disrespect. _And oh_ , as if that wasn't _unforgiveable_ enough, after I made the good and conscious decision to walk away and leave his sorry ass, your son came into my home - my parent's home _uninvited_ and physically assaulted me." At that, Olivia saw Elaine's eyes pop out like saucers. This truly shocked her. Good! "I have been cheated on, disrespected, assaulted, terrorized and stalked - all by your son, so _EXCUSE THE FUCK_ out of me if I don't buy into your compromising bullshit. _Excuse me, your Highness_ if I don't buy you telling me to degrade my self-respect and dignity like you did for a fucking ring on my finger." Shifting on one foot to the next, Olivia leaned closer to make certain that the next part of her century read-of-filth was audible to hearing. "Now, this _spiteful bitch_ right here is the bitch that's not gonna slap you with a law suit that will leave you bankrupt beyond your rotten grave. This _spiteful bitch_ right here is the bitch that's gonna take the highroad with you today because _honestly_ , you and your son have thoroughly drained me of all my energy with all of your shit." She added. "So out of respect for my own mother, I'm not gonna turn this hospital into a bloodbath by familiarizing your face with every single wall in this facility. But if you _**ever**_ lose your goddamned mind again and touch a hair on my head: I promise you - truly, really, honestly - _I. Will. Fucking. Bury. You_. Mark my words, lady."

At that, Olivia stepped away from the woman's personal space, not wanting to even be breathing the same air as her any longer. Elaine - at this point - was visibly shaking and she was pretty sure that her blood pressure was spiking at an all time high. She just might have to get admitted to the hospital also right next to her son. In all of her sixty odd years of life, she has never felt more disrespected. More shamed. More shook.

Elaine watched Olivia walk away and call for the elevator. Before she stepped into the lift, Olivia told her one last thing that sent her to her knees, gripping for a wall in support. And she wept for the first time since her husband abandoned her and their child. _Edison needed fixing._ And perhaps, so did she.

888

Olivia couldn't believe the last sixty minutes of her life. She has never had the urge to smoke, drink and beat the hell out of something all at the same damn time. As soon as she stepped outside the walls of St. Luke's Memorial Hospital, she hopped into a cab straight to Abby's. She didn't trust herself to be alone at her apartment. She would only break things and though that might provide her some satisfaction for a short time, she wasn't too interested in the clean up that would have to follow afterwards. So, therefore, Abby's place was her best resort. Coincidentally, Thursdays happen to be the day Abby doesn't open the Parlor. And it was barely noon so there's a chance that she might still be home, in bed.

When Olivia got to Abby's apartment building, she placed a phone call to the redhead.

"If you're calling to rob Spain in my face, you're wasting your billable minutes, dear." Abby answered, her voice laced with sleep.

"I'm downstairs. Buzz me up." Olivia simply said.

There was a pause over the line before Abby registered what she said. How is Olivia Pope in her apartment building when she's supposed to be far away, on Spanish soil with a hot specimen of a man that goes by the name of Fitzgerald Grant?

"Wait… what?!" Abby exclaimed, jumping out of bed with a start. "What the fuck?"

"Buzz me up, Abby!" Olivia said impatiently.

In less than two minutes, Olivia was being pulled into a hug by the redhead and even though she hasn't said anything yet to Abby, the redhead looked just as royally pissed off as Olivia was. And once again, without being told a word, Abby sat Olivia at her dining table while she went off in her kitchen to retrieve two shot glasses and a bottle of Hennessey. The redhead had the feeling that it was much needed. It was barely noon but somewhere around the world, it must already be 5 p.m.

Abby poured them each a shot then faced her best friend. "Tell me everything." She requested. "Who's the bitch I'm gonna have to throat punch?"

Over the next hour, Olivia recalled all the previous day and this morning's events to Abby. The redhead suggested that they go back to the hospital after dark and inject some deadly poison in Edison's serum and have a hitman light up Elaine's ass with bullets. Olivia had half a mind to agree but then she realized that one of them had to be level headed in all this. Besides, Olivia enjoyed fresh air and her freedom way entirely too much to risk it all on those mentally unstable people. But if it's the last thing she does on this earth, she will get her peace from them. One way or another - but it's gonna be in a proper manner.

"Does Fitz know yet?" Abby asked.

Olivia shook her head. "I came straight here." She replied. "And if I tell Fitz, he'll kill them."

"You make it sound like it's such a terrible idea." Abby scoffed.

"Abby come on." Olivia sighed.

She didn't want Fitz tangled in all this mess. This was her problem; her mess and she was a big girl. She could handle it. She didn't want to taint her precious ray of sunshine in this mess. So, Olivia was making a conscious decision to leave him out of it.

"I'm serious!" Abby cried.

"So am I." Olivia said.

 _"You have to tell him."_ Abby emphasized. "It's not just you that could be in danger, Liv. Edison has had all of us watched at some point and _I_ know that you and Fitz have nothing going on beyond friendship _but Edison_ doesn't know that." The redhead reasoned. "In his psycho, jumbo, crazy-for-coco-Liv mind, Edison probably thinks Fitz is giving you some kind of next level A1 dick. If for a second he thinks Fitz is the reason you're not coming back to him, I'm sorry to tell you, your boy might be next on Edison's list of shits."

Olivia's eyes grew as wide as saucers. "What the fuck, Abby?" She exclaimed. "You've been watching too many damn movies lately!"

Abby chuckled. She really has been watching a lot of movies - influenced by Stephen Finch but she was sort of also serious. She probably wasn't too far fetched in the theory she just laid down for Olivia. "Can you honestly tell me I'm wrong, though?" She asked Olivia. "The man purposely got into a nearly fatal car accident to get you to sympathize with him. _What makes you think he's above anything else?_ "

Now that the seed was planted, it was starting to take root and Olivia went from totally chill, to instant pacing.

"Shit, shit, shit!" She would never forgive herself if something happened to Fitz because of her. Realistic or not, Olivia understood the danger that it posed if she doesn't at least warn Fitz about all of this madness. "I have to tell him." Olivia resigned.

Abby poured Olivia another shot of Hennessey. "Yes, you do." She nodded. "Bottoms up."

…

They ordered a big brunch from Whooper's Diner just a block away from Abby's apartment. They planned on getting shitfaced together for the day so it was only wise that they got some form of nutrition in their stomachs. An invitation was extended to Quinn via text message and soon the three women were making one hell of a party out of what started out to be such a shitty day. They spent all afternoon playing the Wii and taking turns painting each other's nails and toes.

"You should definitely still go to Spain." Quinn said as she added gel nail polish to Olivia's toes.

Shaking her head, Olivia blew out a breath. "I feel like it's all ruined." She said. "How am I supposed to have fun when all I can worry about is the safety of my friends?" She growled at Abby for planting that stupid seed in her head.

"Lucky for you, all your friends are grown and know how to defend themselves." Quinn said.

"Mhmmm." Abby interjected from the couch. She was laying upside down with her legs against the wall so that her toes can dry. "And I would welcome the chance to use my gun on his ass."

"Why do you have a gun?!" Quinn asked, totally petrified.

Who in their right mind thought it was a good idea to give this particular redhead a registered gun? Do they not know how crazy she is?

"No guns, Abigail." Olivia said.

Abby shrugged. "Fine. You're no fun." She said. "So, you going to Spain or what?"

"I don't know." Olivia replied.

"I'll tell you the same thing you told me after Charles." Abby begin.

She didn't like to take the trip down that particularly memory lane but for her best friend in the entire world, she'd jump off a cliff so this was the least she could do.

"No jackass gets to dictate the direction in which your life goes… or even how you live it for that matter." Abby said. "You bought expensive ass tickets for Spain so do as you were going to and bring Fitz's fine, sexy ass with you. While you're over there, find yourself a hot Spanish man and screw his brains out in the back of his dad's 1970's convertible, slutty-style. Go have some fucking adventures, kid. Edison can go eat shit and die."

Olivia just stared at her best friend. Speechless.

… Okay then.

888

The rest of the day flew by. At some point, Olivia stopped sulking. And somewhere between all the drinking, all three of them ended up passed out on the floor of Abby's living room. Olivia was the first to wake up around seven thirty. She smiled at her sleeping friends. They made such a mess.

She cleaned up a bit before she decided to make use of Abby's huge shower. She could feel a headache coming despite her long nap. The only cure to it would be a shower, some delicious dinner and a lot of water to rehydrate.

Olivia took her time in the shower; soaking under the powerful sprays of the water. She was adamant on washing away all the negativity that this day entailed. By the time she got out of the shower, Abby and Quinn were awake, visibly regretting their decision of drinking so much.

"Shower helps." Olivia told them.

She was sort of glad that she had a suitcase with her. She slipped on some shorts and a t-shirt that undoubtedly belonged to Fitz. It was the shirt he'd given to her to sleep in the first night they met and obviously, she's kept it. The shirt had quickly become her favorite thing to sleep in ever since so it was no surprise that she had packed it to go to Spain. The material of the shirt was so soft and Olivia loved how snug it fit her even though it was twice her regular size.

She ordered Thai takeout while the other girls took turns in the shower. Soon enough, they were right back where they begin. On the floor of Abby's living room, each with a takeout container, munching on their favorite Thai dish. Somewhere between dinner, Cece called on Abby's phone. She mentioned that she's been trying to reach Olivia and got worried when the calls kept going to voicemail. That reminded Olivia to put her phone in charge.

Conversation about organizing a girl's night out, soon somehow turned into talks of guys. Between Cece's gushing about how _incredible_ Harrison was in all aspects in her life and _especially in bed,_ and Abby's very descriptive details of how _amazing_ Stephen also was, Olivia realized just how… _lonely_ she felt.

Prior to calling it quits with Edison, her sex life was pretty much non-existent. Real intimacy was always lacking between her and Edison so once she started suspecting him of cheating, there was no throes to be had between the sheets. She got checked to make sure she was clean and kept her legs closed until the day she flipped on him at that restaurant. Now months later, listening to her friends talk about their own sexual escapades, she realized how wanting she felt for affection. Not even sex. Olivia could go without sex because she didn't believe that sex was all that made a relationship. While it was great when it was a factor, she's the romantic type. She prefers lingering kisses; intimate touches in the middle of the night. A warm body to wrap herself around in comfort. She missed being touched in that sensual, delicate way that only a real man's hands can provide. But more than that, she missed being kissed with the passion of a thousand fires. Thinking about it was enough to make her extremely depressed.

She excused herself from her friends, although she didn't even think they'd notice her absence with them laughing so hard. Retrieving her phone from her bag, Olivia borrowed Abby's charger and disappeared to the balcony with her teddy bear for some fresh air.

The phone powered on once it got enough charge. A cacophony of notifications immediately popped on and Olivia was able to see that Fitz had tried to call her several times. After all attempts had obviously failed, he'd left her one text message. _I hope everything's okay. Give me a call when you can. I miss you, gorgeous._ It was sweet and simple. Yet, it made her heart beat so damn fast.

Olivia didn't even have to think about it. Her fingers clearly had a mind of their own because pretty soon, she was dialing him on FaceTime. It rang once before his beautiful, handsome face graced the wide screen of her phone. And for the first time since she woke up this morning, Olivia felt like she could finally breathe right again.

 _"… Hi."_ She said.

He smiled back, adoringly. _"Hi."_

888

When Olivia finally went back inside Abby's apartment, it was past midnight. Both Abby and Quinn were cuddled up under a blanket on the couch engrossed in an episode of The Simpsons. Abby smiled at her sleepily then patted the empty space to her left for Olivia to come join them. Olivia happily obliged. She couldn't believe how lucky she was to be surrounded by such great friends.

"So I take it Spain is happening?" Abby asked.

Laying her head on the redhead's high shoulder, Olivia took a deep breath and fixed her eyes on the TV. "Spain is happening." She replied.

Abby kissed her cheek and smiled. The redhead knew that Olivia would make the right choice.

…

The next morning, Abby was a monster. She had the kind of headache that felt like she was bitch-slapped by Satan himself. It didn't feel good. As soon as she stepped out of bed, she went straight for the medicine cabinet in her bathroom. She took two Tylenols all in one go before stepping in the shower.

Twenty minutes later, Abby stepped out of the shower, and padded straight to her fridge in the kitchen. It was the most depressing sight. She had nothing but Greek yogurt and cheese sticks for food. Just as she was about to give up on life altogether, her front door opened and in walked Olivia and Quinn carrying breakfast and trays of coffee from Starbucks.

She ran to them at the door and took the cup that marked her order on it. Flipping the cap off, she took a long sip of the warm beverage with long moans escaping her mouth.

Olivia laughed. "You're welcome." She teased.

The redhead enveloped her two best friends in a group hug while still trying to sip her coffee. Soon enough, they moved to the table in the living and had breakfast while watching rerun episodes of _Charmed_.

"So what time are you and Fitz supposed to go to Spain?" Abby asked.

Olivia bit into her cream-cheese covered sesame bagel. "I don't know. I was thinking of going on Friday but the more I think about it, the more I just wanna show up to his job and leave with him today."

"You think too much." Abby said. "Just do it."

Too soon, it was time for Abby and Quinn to leave for work.

888

 _ **Couple days later...**_

The past few days have been long for Fitz. He was more exhausted than he was letting on and if he was being entirely honest with himself, a tiny part of him was disappointed at not being currently in Spain. Although he would never share that little tidbit with Olivia. He can't remember the last time he made the conscious decision to take some time off to travel. And when he finally did, Edison fucking Davis had to intervene someway, somehow. He understood, shit happens but that didn't mean he didn't get to be disappointed.

It was rounding up to the four o'clock on Friday and he had just wrapped up an intense work out session with a client. To say that he was proud of the effort the young athlete had put into the session would be an understatement and it was on days like these that Fitz was proud of the business he ran.

As he was rounding the corner of his office with a towel around his neck, he bumped into Stephen.

"What?" Fitz asked.

Stephen wore a smirk on his lips as if he knew something Fitz didn't and indeed he did. "You got company." He said.

"What are you talking about?" Fitz took in his surroundings and saw no one in particular just sitting around and waiting for him. "Who?"

"Olivia." Stephen replied.

Although he tried not to, a smile immediately formed on Fitz's face. "And you didn't think to come get me sooner, asshole?"

"You were training someone, _asshole_." Stephen retorted. "Go ahead lover boy, she's in the office."

With a muttered "fuck you" under his breath, Fitz pushed passed a still smirking Stephen and opened the door to his office. Sitting behind his desk was his fireball, looking as beautiful as ever.

"This is a nice surprise." Fitz said with a smile.

"I missed you." Olivia admitted. "And I figured if I came to you and cut your day short, we just might make the seven-fifteen flight to Madrid."

Fitz's eyes widened instantly and he found that he couldn't stop smiling then even if he wanted to. "Are you serious?"

Nodding, Olivia finally stood up and begin to walk towards him. She really did miss him and she wanted nothing more than to hug him but he was a sweaty, sexy mess and she just couldn't. "So serious." She replied. "I wanna go away with you, Fitzgerald Grant. If you're still up for it, of course."

Then, the only thought running through Fitz's mind was: "I could so kiss you right now." But he settled for a goofy grin and a sweet kiss to Olivia's forehead when she was close enough. "Do I have time to hop in the shower?"

"Yeah." Olivia replied. "You didn't unpack, did you?"

"Nope." Fitz answered. "I guess a part of me was hoping you still wanted to go too."

"God, you're cute." Olivia teased and oddly enough, she thought that made him so freaking hot. Where that came from, she couldn't exactly say. And seeing him blush didn't help either. "We're right on schedule. I wanted to grab a late-lunch-early-dinner at our pizza place before we leave."

"Sounds good." Fitz agreed. Another kiss to Olivia's forehead, he was off to hit the showers. "I won't be long."

"I'll be here." Olivia promised.

…

Twenty-five minutes later he was back to the office, handsomely dressed and looking as beautiful as ever. Olivia couldn't help checking him out. He was a confident, and incredibly good looking man and he always dressed the part. That to her was really sexy.

"Finally." Olivia sighed impatiently as if she couldn't have waited another second. "Can I get a hug now that you're not a hot, sweaty mess?"

"Are you flirting with me, little lady?" Fitz teased.

Olivia rolled her eyes and played nonchalant but if she was hooked up to a machine: like a lie detector of some sort, she couldn't explain to you why her heart skipped a beat or better yet why she felt flushed.

"Don't flatter yourself cowboy." She responded and before she could go on a rant and defend her words, Fitz was pulling her into one of her favorite hugs. The kind she always melts into and felt safest in. It also didn't help that he smelled like heaven too.

Soon enough they were on their way out with Stephen yelling to them to bring him back a souvenir because he deserved it.

…

As per usual at Azzara's, they overindulged with delicious Italian dishes and pink lemonade to remain refreshed. As time was of the essence, they didn't stay long after their meal. And though they wished they could keep up with tradition and take a stroll throughout the city to explore, they had a much better alternative. Before they knew it, Fitz was parking The General in front of his apartment and opening the passenger's door for Olivia.

Arranging his apartment and making sure that everything was exactly how it should be didn't take long. And with his bags already packed, they were out on their way to the airport in no time in the back of an Uber. When the driver asked where they were heading, both Olivia and Fitz were more than happy to indulge the mid-forties man in conversation. Adrenaline ran high and their excitement bounced off each other. They held hands the whole ride as they discussed what they were both excited to see and do while over in Spain.

Once at the airport, they went through the same process they did as two days prior. Except this time, Olivia vowed to make it to Spain. Nothing was going to stop her. They each had a glass of wine to loosen up at the same burger joint they visited before and with no delays, it wasn't much longer before they were boarding their flight.

When the first class group were called, Olivia stood up along with a handful of other people.

"That's us." She said to Fitz.

"First class?" Fitz questioned, mouth hanging. He's never been on a plane before in his life. Not to his knowledge at least.

"Yeah." Olivia nodded nonchalantly. "I figured it was your first time so I wanted it to be memorable."

Before Fitz could say anything, Olivia was grabbing his hand and dragging him with her to get their tickets to the gate agent awaiting.

Fitz always thought the movies over exaggerated when it came to stuff like this. But upon stepping foot inside the plane, he realized just how fucking fancy everything truly was. And if he was being honest with himself, he was slightly geeking out a little bit on the inside. The seats were large, the air smelled pristine and everything from the leather flat bed seats to the carpet on the floor was top notch luxury.

And then it dawned on Fitz… this shit looks expensive so it _must_ be so as well. And then way too soon his moment of George Clooney was over as he turned Olivia to face him.

"This must've cost you an arm and a leg, Livvie." He said. "It's too much."

"More like a kidney and half a liver." Olivia joked, chuckling. "It's perfect."

And even though Fitz was being serious, he couldn't help but smile at her teasing him. "I'm serious, Livvie."

Olivia shook her head. This was her world… and she felt awful for just thrusting Fitz into it. She had to remind herself that Fitz grew up very differently than she did and perhaps she should've consulted with him first about those seats even though she was trying to do a kind thing.

"Does it make you uncomfortable?" She asked. "I can talk to one of the stewardess and see if someone in economy can switch cabins with us." She was used to this stuff and after a whole lifetime of it, she could care less where she sat. She just wanted Fitz to feel comfortable. It was all that mattered to her at the moment.

"Yeah… I'm not that uncomfortable." A grin spread across Fitz's cheek as he wrapped Olivia in his arms. Pushing a strand of unruly curls behind her ears, he looked deeply into her chocolate brown eyes with a hint of adoration in his eyes before placing a loud kiss on Olivia's cheek. "No more spending for you on this trip. I got the rest."

"Okay." Olivia smiled. She'll agree to just about anything if he keeps looking at her like this while holding her in his arms.

After putting their luggage in the overhead compartment, they took their luxurious seats next to each other. Olivia helped Fitz buckle up and soon after a routine guide video played on a flat screen TV in front of them, the pilot announced that they were ready for take off.

And it was then that Olivia begin to learn a lot more about Fitz. Like he was deathly terrified of the airplane take-off and perhaps window seat was a bad decision on her part for him. She held his hand the whole time and successfully got his mind off the take off until they were miles up in the air, safe and in the clear.

"You doing okay?" Olivia asked.

Bringing their entwined hands to his lips, Fitz kissed Olivia's knuckles affectionately. His fear now replaced with bliss and peace with Olivia fully wrapped in his arms. "I'm more than okay." He replied. And he was. As he glanced outside the window, he had the perfect view of the most beautiful sunset he's ever seen and next to him was the most beautiful and perfect human being he knows. He was more than okay. He was overwhelmed and bursting with joy. No more words were needed as Olivia rest her head against his chest and stared out the window with him too until the sky faded into black.

They spent the better half of the seven and a half hours flight in deep conversation and constant laughter. Fitz swapping more stories of his teenage mischief days and Olivia of her rebellious teenagehood. They sipped on expensive red wine and snacked on assortments of delicious cheeses, charcuterie and crackers while watching movies ranging from action, comedy and romance. Somewhere in between all that, they had a delicious meal of hot and sour mushroom soup, honey-curry glazed lamb with creamy potatoes and broccolini. Halfway through Fast and Furious 7, Fitz could barely keep his eyes open. It had everything to do with how full and exhausted and relaxed he was.

"You're so stubborn." Olivia chuckled as he yawned for the third time.

"Hi pot, it's me kettle." Fitz retorted.

"Touché." Olivia nodded. She brought her hand to Fitz's handsome face and dust off a curly eyelash from his cheek. "You should get some sleep." She advised.

"I'm okay. I wanna finish watching the movie with you. It was just getting good." Fitz argued.

Somehow, Olivia's hand had found their way through his thick, chocolate curls and she was absent-mindedly massaging his scalp and scratching it softly, effectively making Fitz's eyes grow heavier by each passing second.

"You have grandpa eyes." Olivia teased.

A small chuckle escaped Fitz. "Am I still handsome though?" He asked.

 _"Always."_ Olivia smiled. "Now will you get some sleep… please?"

"Okay fireball." Fitz agreed, placing a soft kiss on Olivia's forehead. He reclined his seat back and turned it into a full flat-bed. Olivia got the attention of one of the stewardess and requested for a blanket and two pillows. Once she received them, she did the same with her seat as Fitz did, switched off the overhead lights and settled comfortably next to him.

"Livvie…" Fitz whispered.

Facing him on her side, Olivia looked up at him. "Yeah?"

"I'm happy." Fitz said, smiling. Maybe it was the side of effect of too much wine and his exhaustion put together, but whatever it was, Fitz felt the need to tell this woman next to him the truth about exactly what he was feeling and how much she contributed to that feeling. So he did. "In this moment… right here, right now - I'm happy. _You make me so happy_."

Olivia's response was to scoot closer to him and use his chest as the most comfortable pillow that sadly, no amount of money could buy. Pretty soon they both dozed off, warmly and safely entwined together. Even their stewardess couldn't help but to smile at the beautiful picture they made when she walked down the aisles of the plane, checking on everyone.

It could've been minutes, maybe hours - Olivia wasn't sure but a small turbulence shook her awake. She glanced up at Fitz who was still knocked out and she gathered that he must really be exhausted. Never having had the luxury or courage to really stare at him, Olivia watched him as he slept, a peaceful look on his beautiful features. A stubborn chocolate curl hanging ever so perfectly against his forehead, making him look as adorable as he was handsome. Glancing down, Olivia realized they were still holding hands and though she long ago stopped wondering how it was possible for them to fit so perfectly together, the sight still took her breath away. And it dawned on her then… in this moment, right here… right now, on this plane, with this man… she too was the happiest she's ever been. But then again that's been a constant ever since she met him. Olivia knew that no matter what she would never let Fitz go.

… Except for when she really needed to go to the bathroom. Which she did, right now.

As soon as she let go of his hand and lifted her head from his chest, Fitz's eyes flew open and Olivia thought it was the funniest yet the most ridiculous thing ever. A shaky turbulence didn't do the trick but the weight of her massive curls lifting off his chest was just what was necessary. He was a cute, adorable and ridiculous man and she was flattered.

Rubbing his hands over his eyes in an almost childlike manner, he yawned. "Where are you going?" His sleep-ridden voice was as sexy as all sin.

"Bathroom." Olivia replied as she stood up. "Do you want anything?"

Fitz nodded, looking up at Olivia. "Water?"

"Okay." She smiled. He really did look adorable and Olivia couldn't resist the urge to lean down and kiss his forehead.

Five minutes later, Olivia returned with a fresh face and two bottles of water in hand. At the same time, the pilot's voice ringed through the speakers of the airplane, announcing their ETA to Madrid in less than an hour.

Gone was the remaining slumber in Fitz's eyes as excitement returned.

888

They touched down Madrid at 8 a.m. and as soon as they stepped foot on the Spaniard soil, everything felt different. The rush, the energy, the language, the people… it all came in a fastball that hit Fitz straight in the heart and he fell in love with the city instantly. His eyes worked quickly to take in his surroundings and everything was so beautiful, the streets so grand and the people so kind that he could hardly wait for to begin his journey of exploration. His ultimate shocker though, came when Olivia bust out her perfect Spanish to get them a taxi. He thought she could only piece a few words together. He didn't know that she could actually speak Spanish fluently and the knowledge that she did, made her all the more sexy to him. What could he say? He had a type. _Olivia Pope._

"You've been holding out on me, Fireball." He teased while they rode in the back of the taxi.

"That was two years of Spanish at Princeton Private Academy, baby." Olivia informed. "Oh… I'm also fluent in French. We'll hit the South of France in December."

Fitz could only smile. "Italy in Spring. My treat."

"You're so on, Mr. Grant."

For their three day stay, they checked into The **Gran Meliá Fénix** \- one of the best hotels in Central Madrid surrounded by all the hotspots.

Fitz was just as floored and impressed with their hotel room as he was by those luxurious seat on the plane. He didn't know how he was going to repay Olivia for all of this. She really was going above and beyond to make this the best vacation he's ever had and he was so grateful.

"I thought we agreed that I would pay for the rest of this vacation?" He said as he dropped their luggage on the floor.

Walking towards the fully stocked bar in their hotel room, Olivia popped open a bottle of champagne that had been chilling in a bucket of ice and then, she continued to the full fridge for a pitcher of passion fruit juice. It was as if she knew those things would be there waiting. She grabbed two tall champagne flute off a shelf and begin to mix the undoubtedly expensive champagne and passion fruit juice together. "Here." She handed one of the flutes to Fitz who took it without hesitation. She tested the mimosa and moaned at the impeccable taste.

"My friend Tristan Velez owns shares in this hotel. We're staying here free of charge." She told Fitz nonchalantly. "Cheers."


End file.
